A Boy Named Bobby
by KitaxHaku
Summary: Arnold left without a trace in the summer of 4th grade. The years have pasted and everyone's older. Now a boy named Bobby has come and is making it as hard for Helga as possible. Is it her imagination, or does he look like Arnold? Is she crazy? HxA,GxP
1. Meet Bobby

_I remember the day that he left us…the day that Arnold went away…_

"_**Arnold…please…wait! Wait for me, Arnold! Don't leave us!" Arnold's twelve year old body turned, his hair strangely damp, which resulted in his eyes being covered.**_

"_**Helga…I'm sorry…say good bye to everyone for me." His small and fragile body shook as he turned back around, and walked in to darkness.**_

"_**No…Arnold! Arnold!"**_

_And that…wasn't even what happened._

_Arnold, you left us without a trace. None of us know where you are, not Harold, Stinky, Phoebe, or even your best friend, Gerald. Your grandparents wouldn't tell us anything, either; they locked themselves up in their home, and never came out, only thinking about their grandson. It was as if you were dead._

_But I don't believe that you are dead Arnold…I believe that one day, you will return to us. And when you do, I'll be waiting._

_Love,_

_Helga G. Pataki_"

* * *

G-good morning…" A petite Asian girl walked in to her new class room, looking around nervously for someone she knew.

"Phoebe! Over here!" She turned her head quickly to see her old friends Gerald and Harold. After sighing thankfully, she quickly walked over, grabbing an empty seat beside Gerald. "We're in the same class again, how great!" Gerald said, tilting his head to the side. Phoebe looked at his hair, expecting a giant cylinder of hair to bounce with it, but there was no such luck. He had pulled his hair back so that it was now tamed by braids. It was hard to believe, considering how he kept his hair so long from elementary to middle school.

"Hey Phoebe, do you have any food?" Harold asked, distracting her gaze by rubbing his stomach. She sighed, digging in her purse as she shared a glance with Gerald. Harold's eating habits never changed, despite his muscle growth and fat decay. Actually, it seemed as though he ate more now that he was pumped up about football.

"Here you go. I only have this protein bar." Harold gladly took it, and quickly opened it.

"Thanks! I have to get ready for football after school today!" Phoebe blinked.

"Eh? Did you try-out during the summer?"

"Yep, Coach really likes me, he picked me first on the final choosing session. I'm the best defense player in the ninth grade, he says!" Harold finished stuffing the bar in to his mouth, and smiled as he chewed. Phoebe and Gerald only sighed before sharing a smile.

"He's the same as always…" Phoebe said,

"Even if we're freshmen." Gerald finished. They chuckled with each other as Harold swallowed the lump of food in his mouth.

"Ah, this is going to be a great year!" Harold said, grabbing Gerald by the neck and attempting to sing some song that nobody knew.

"I see everyone is well." The three turned (Gerald had trouble, of course, since he was still in a head lock), recognizing the voice of one of their childhood friends. "Good morning." Phoebe stood up and ran over to hug her best friend tightly.

Her blonde hair, which reached the middle of her back (which was tied in a pony tail), swayed lightly with her loose pink dress as Phoebe squeezed her both curvy and light body. Her sparkling blue eyes narrowed down at the slightly shorter Japanese girl with a dazzling smile; she too had missed her best friend.

"Good morning, Helga!" Helga smiled down at her old buddy, and parted from her. The two walked back over to Harold and Gerald, who nodded and waved to Helga. After returning the gestures, Helga sat down behind Phoebe, claiming the seat quickly.

"So," Helga asked, crossing her legs and leaning forward, "Has anyone heard about our teacher yet? Is he mean or nice?" Harold and Phoebe shrugged, but all three looked to Gerald, who they knew knew something. Gerald opened one eye before smirking lightly to himself. He nodded lightly before speaking.

"He is okay by me. He'll let you off for tardies and you can use the bathroom as much as you like, but he will not accept nasty attitudes." Harold, Gerald and Phoebe looked at Helga with his last comment, and she blinked.

"Come on now, give me a break!" Helga said quickly, her cheeks brightening. "I'm not that bad anymore, am I?!"

"No comment." The three said, causing Helga to growl.

"I've gotten better! Don't be so mean!" She punched Harold on the shoulder harshly and the football player yelped; only Helga could hurt him, whether it was in his pride or bones.

"Ouch! That's why we didn't say anything!" Helga hissed at him, and stalked out of the room. Gerald and Phoebe avoided eye contact with Harold; they knew Helga got mad because of what he said. Harold attempted clearing things up, making himself look like the victim. "S-she hit me really hard! Her hits always hurt, you know what I mean, don't you? Gerald? Phoebe?" But the two only looked at each other before confronting their friend.

"But…Harold…she's been trying to be more feminine since you-know-who left …" Phoebe whispered, not daring to look at him as Gerald nodded.

"That's right. He left us and she suddenly decided that she was going to change everything. Why else do you think we said 'no comment?' Idiot, you said it too." After realizing his flaws, Harold quickly stood up and chased after Helga. Though he was what many would consider 'a stupid jock,' Harold still followed his own code of morals, even though he was also a hot head like Helga. He noticed her stomping through the hall, and he called out to her. She still didn't respond, and his hot head steamed up. As he gripped her arm, she spun around quickly to confront him.

"Helga, wait up! I wanted to say--"

"Don't touch me, or you'll get hurt!" She said as if to mock him, causing Harold to get more defensive.

"What's with you?" He yelled back, "We always joke around like this, what makes it so_ insulting_ now?" Helga narrowed her eyes at him.

"What makes you think that it wasn't insulting before?" Harold stopped arguing, and Helga glared at him. He blinked.

"Insulting? Was it?"

"Of course it was insulting, but it makes me feel even worse now because you're a big jock who got hurt by a girl! And that girl doesn't want to be that strong anymore!" She covered her mouth, and began to blush in embarrassment. Harold's eyes widened as he looked at the stubborn girl in front of him. He had always seen her inflexible and harsh side, but never had he seen her blushing…especially like this. He found his own face filling with the same color of red as he gazed at her red face. She noticed him staring, and she walked around him, heading back to the class room. "A-anyway, don't talk to me like that again!" Harold watched her walk away and lifted his hand to his cheek.

"She…she's so cute when she blushes…"

* * *

"Good morning, Helga!" Upon hearing her friend, Helga stopped and turned to wait for Phoebe.

"Good morning, Phoebe. Did you get the homework for math done?" Phoebe nodded as Helga groaned. "I got it done, too, but I stayed up until four to finish it!" Phoebe only giggled and Helga blew a strand of hair out of her face. "I don't know if I can make it, Phoebe. It's only second quarter…"

Helga walked in to the usual class room with Phoebe, but noticed that someone was sitting in her seat. She thought that it would be a usual day; she thought that she'd dread school as she usually did, but today, she met a new person, a transfer student. And he was sitting in her chair.

He sat in her seat with his toned legs crossed as he spoke with Harold and Gerald, who seemed to have taken a liking to him quickly. His blonde hair was a shade darker than hers, but his eyes shone bright blue as the light reflected off of them. His clothes consisted of a plaid over shirt, a light blue shirt under, and a pair of loose, black, cut-up jeans. Helga was speechless; the only difference between her beloved Arnold and the kid sitting in her chair was that he didn't have a football head and a little blue hat. But then again, Helga always thought that one day he would 'grow out of them.'

"Oi, Helga! Are you awake?" Helga came back to the real world, and noticed the boy looking at her with narrowed eyes. She blinked, hadn't his eyes just been lit up with joy while talking to Harold and Jerald? Harold leaned over the bar connecting his seat and desk to look at Helga closely. "I was talking to you!" Helga turned her head to Harold, but her eyes almost refused to follow. The boy smirked at her for a moment before looking away, and she, though mad and insulted, finally looked at Harold. Her three friends looked at the new comer, worried that he would be beat up for the move he pulled, but Harold quickly captured Helga's attention. "H-Helga, this is---" Her bag slammed on her desk loudly, and their classmates all turned to look at why so much noise was being made so early in the morning. Helga growled at the boy, and turned around to leave the classroom.

"I don't care who he is, just get him out of my seat by the time I get back." She sent him another glare, and to this one he only smirked at again. As her eye twitched, she called to her best friend. "Phoebe, come with me please."

* * *

"P-please calm down, Helga!" Helga gulped down a large mug of coffee in the cafeteria before slamming it down on the table. "This is your third cup already!" But Helga only stood and bought another cup before finally talking with Phoebe.

"I can't help it, Phoebe!" She said, almost yelling, "He was such a jerk to me! And I can't believe I almost thought that he was—" Phoebe blinked as Helga finally calmed herself down.

"Helga?" Phoebe whispered, touching her friend's hand lightly. She jumped in response, and began to laugh loudly. What was she getting so upset for? Arnold left back in the summer of fourth grade; she had managed to deal with it just fine until some knock off came looking like him. She had to get a grip on herself; that kid wasn't Arnold.

"Oh gosh, what am I saying? Sorry I did that, Phoebe, you didn't need to witness that side of me again, only the heavens know how many times you have." She took a last gulp of coffee and stood up, only to sit back down quickly, and lay her head on the table.

"E-eh? Helga, what's wrong?" She tilted her head so that her friend could see her face of pain.

"T…Too much…coffee…" She whispered, gripping her stomach in pain. Phoebe sighed.

"I told you to calm down…"

"Well it was either coffee or the pork rinds, and you know how it is with those things…"

* * *

Are you feeling better, Helga?" Harold asked quickly as he noticed the blonde walking back in to the class room. She looked at him with a look of death as Phoebe rubbed her back. When Gerald gave her a questioning look, Phoebe explained.

"She was drinking coffee." Gerald and Harold stared at Helga for a moment before standing up and moving their chairs away from Helga as far as possible. She glared at them weakly and asked them what they were doing.

"Why are you moving your seats so far away?"

"Listen, Helga doll," Gerald said, waving his hand at her as if he were taking her out of a movie, "we've known you for a very, very long time and all, but…" He looked to Harold for some help,

"But because we've known you so long," Harold swallowed the lump in his throat, "We know that you get a little…special…when you drink coffee." Helga only rolled her eyes weakly before sitting down in her chair.

"Well don't worry, I'm too sick to do anything right now." Phoebe gave the two boys a look, and they immediately returned their desks to their normal positions. It was then that Helga noticed that the transfer boy was gone.

"Hey…" She said, lifting her head, "where is the jerk?"

"I'm right here, coffee-girl." Helga turned her head to see him leaning over her, a smirk still glued to his face. Her eye twitched. "And I think we could get along a lot better if you'd call me by my name." Helga turned around in her seat and sat like a boy; it was a good thing she was wearing jeans today. She glared at him, ignoring her churning stomach.

"Well then, what is your name?" The room suddenly got cold, and the two stared at each other for a moment before the boy looked away with a 'humph.' Helga's jaw dropped as he did so, and she clenched the chair tightly, causing cracks to appear in the old wood.

"Well, Harold was going to tell you earlier, but you interrupted him so rudely. You should listen more carefully." With that, he walked out of the classroom, leaving a stunned group of teens; at least until Helga burst with rage.

"I swear, I'll-I'll…I'll do something bad to him!" She avoided using the word 'kill' since she'd almost been suspended by the principal for doing so last quarter. Harold and Phoebe held her down until she calmed down a little. As the bell rang, the teacher walked in with the transfer student at his side.

"Good morning everyone."

"Good morning!"

"So, I bet you're wondering who this dashing young man beside me is?" He joked with a wink. "Well, this is Bobby…" He stared at his paper for a moment, looked at Bobby, and then back at the paper before Bobby finished it for him.

"Butterfly, sir." He turned from the teacher and looked straight at Helga, who stiffened a little. "Hello, my name is Bobby Butterfly. I just came back from South America." There were 'ohs' and 'ahs' through out the classroom, but certainly none from Helga. "…I hope you will help me catch up." As the teacher began to talk again, girls giggled and boys growled at him, while Helga broke the contact of her eyes from Bobby's.

_Even if he is a jerk…I can't help but see Arnold every time I look at him…_

"Helga," She still stared at the floor, "Helga!" She snapped her head up quickly to look at her teacher, who was sighing. "Pay attention! We haven't even started class yet!" As the classroom ruptured with giggles, Helga scratched the back of her head and nodded an apology. "Now then, since you already know Bobby," Helga blinked, "You will be showing him around today." Helga stood out of her seat quickly, turning red.

"Huh? B-but, what about my classes?" She stuttered out. Why? Why did all the bad stuff happen to her? The teacher only cocked an eyebrow and looked at her strangely.

"You have the same classes all day, so I don't think you'll miss anything." Helga stared at her teacher in disbelief—no way was this actually happening. No way!


	2. Stomach aches

Hello everyone! I hope you've enjoyed the first chapter, and are looking forward to the second chapter! Also, I wanted to thank my reviewers so much for the advice and corrections; I will admit I was a bit sloppy on the first chapter. I was just so excited and pumped about it, I kind of forgot to check over it carefully (Oops…). And I apologize for this chapter's sloppiness…but yeah, anyway, thank you, and enjoy this chapter!

-- KitaxHaku

* * *

"Helga, could you wait for me while I get my stuff?" Helga only raised her nose in the air with a snort before she picked up her back pack quickly. It was after the first period, where she had gone through enough torture for a life time. Bobby sat next to her, with a steaming jealous Harold on the other side. And after seeing Harold's reaction to Bobby's interest in Helga, she found that she wanted get away from the transfer kid Bobby as soon as possible. What was his deal? Why had he requested that _she_ showed him around? She noticed how all the girls sighed at him, it made no sense. Why would he pick the tomboy, of this group of cute girls, as his tour guide? She sighed; this was definitely not helping her stomach ache go away. Helga turned to Phoebe and said bye.

"I'll see you in Home Economics." Phoebe nodded, and Gerald and Harold also said goodbye. She turned, noticing Bobby was catching up, and sped down the hall with him trailing behind. Harold put his waving hand down before growling at Bobby quickly. Gerald tried to hush him, but Harold's jealously was too much.

"Hey, new kid." Bobby blinked as Harold pulled him back. "Don't get any ideas, Helga is mine." The group was quiet for a moment, but Bobby simply blinked before smiling to Harold, who let go of his shoulder in shock. Why was this guy smiling?

"Really?" Harold gave him a confused look before nodding.

"Y-yeah!" Bobby's smile went away, and was quickly replaced with a cocky smirk.

"That's funny, because I didn't see your name anywhere on her. And trust me, I looked…" He made a motion of his hands as if outlining Helga's curves, "…_everywhere_." With that, he sped after Helga, leaving a steaming Harold.

"That jerk!"

* * *

"Helga! Wait for me!" She sent Bobby a glare as he attempted to catch up, but it seemed to have no effect on the boy. "Hurry up, Bobby!" She said in a sweet but tart voice. "We wouldn't want you to be late to your next class!" With that, she bolted in to a run, and Bobby stopped, looking after her in shock. After a moment, though, he began to walk calmly, his face uncontrollably bright, and some what happy.

* * *

"Helga, where is the new kid? I thought you were showing him around?" A girl with red hair and chubby cheeks stood in front of Helga's seat with a smile. "I heard that he was a really cute guy!"

"Oh…it's you…" Was all Helga said, before continuing her reading. Lila was her name; she was the one who always seemed sweet and kind, but at the last moment, she would turn around and leave you as the laughing stock. In elementary school she was innocently sweet, but ever since she got dumped by her first boyfriend in middle school, she turned sour towards everyone. Helga looked up at her again as Lila attempted to keep her smile. Sometimes she felt sorry for her; she had no real friends. Helga always had Phoebe, and after middle school, she had a lot more friends. But for Lila it was the opposite; she was left without a single friend in the end. Lila noticed Helga staring, and she raised an eyebrow.

"What ever so could be the problem?" Lila asked in her 'ever so' polite voice. Helga then looked back down at her book before answering Lila's question; it was the least she could do, she figured.

"He's probably lost."

"Who is, Helga?" Both girls looked behind Helga; one blushed wildly while the other twitched.

"Oh, there you are…" The tall boy only stifled a chuckle, and sat down beside Helga. She cursed inwardly, now they were lab partners.

"You are just so fast; I wasn't able to keep up. Didn't you hear me screaming your name?" He leaned in, and raised an eyebrow. "Or…would you rather me whisper it?" Helga's face paled before she stood up and ran out of the room. Bobby looked after her, satisfied with the result of his evil work. Noticing that another girl was staring at him, he lifted his head to see Lila staring with big, round eyes on a blushing face.

"H-hello, it is…ever so nice to meet you!" She said, her voice squeaking. He was everything she wanted; cute with a toned body, clever, and even slick when insulting someone. Bobby nodded his head to her with a cool smile before returning the kind gesture.

"It is nice to meet you as well…" He raised an eyebrow, waiting for her name. She stuttered it out nervously.

"A-ah, Lila! It's Lila…" Bobby smiled widely.

"Well then, Lila, it's a pleasure to meet such a wonderful woman." Lila would have fainted, had the bell not rung. She quickly walked to her seat in the back corner after stuttering a good bye to her new crush, who only chuckled. Did he think she was cute? She sure hoped so; he was the only one who had ever smiled at her since elementary school.

* * *

The bell rang and Helga still stood in the bathroom, looking at her reflection in the mirror after having calmed her stomach a little more. It still ached, though, and it was getting worse. But she paid no attention to it.

"I really need to stop drinking coffee…" It had been a while since she had chugged so much coffee, and she knew why.

Bobby.

"They…" Helga said in a whisper, "they seem identical, almost in everyway…but his attitude is so different…" Helga sighed, "Why do I see Arnold every time I look at him?" Helga looked at the mirror again, and finally turned red as she thought about how he had whispered to her just five minutes ago. She took a deep breath before walking slowly towards the classroom. She was late, anyway, so she took her time to become mentally prepared, just for Bobby.

"Helga! What have you been doing?" Her science teacher screeched as Helga entered the room again. "You are ten minutes late! If you pull this one more time, I'm going to give you a detention!" Helga apologized.

"I was feeling sick, so I needed to go to the bath—"

"I don't want to hear excuses!" The teacher ranted, "You are supposed to be here at nine o'clock sharp! Now don't do it again!" She sighed for a moment before continuing. "Why can't you be more like Bobby?" Helga froze, and turned to Bobby, who was already starting on the lab by himself. He stopped what he was doing and grinned over to her before offering her some goggles. "Such a charming child…" She pointed to Helga quickly, "Now, Helga, help Bobby!" Helga nodded to her teacher, giving in. There was no way that teacher would ever like her…

"Here you go, Helga." Helga sat in her seat and took the goggles from Bobby. "You can write down what I'm doing. Don't worry about the first few steps, I've already written them down." Helga took the paper and looked at what he had written. She stifled a laugh, but more came up and she burst. Bobby looked at her strangely. "W-what is it?" She finished laughing and grinned at Bobby, who in turn leaned away nervously. She held the paper to his face and pointed to his hand writing.

"What the heck is this?! It's chicken scratch!" She said before laughing more. Bobby blushed in embarrassment.

"W-well, I'd like to see you try any better!" Helga stopped laughing and turned her head to him with a 'poor-child' look. She pulled out her pencil and looked to him again.

"Well then, let's begin."

* * *

"Shut up."

"What's the matter, Bobby?" Bobby walked with Helga, his face red in embarrassment. "You had such a high-and-mighty look on until now!" Helga knew what was wrong. She had written the lab perfectly in science class, and the teacher insisted that Bobby practiced his penmanship. "'I'm sure Helga can help you,' she said!" Helga gloated in his face before a sharp pain stabbed her stomach, causing her to crouch down quickly. Bobby bent down quickly, asking her what was wrong.

"Are you okay?" He asked, a look of concern escaping his face. Helga opened one eye to scowl at Bobby, but she widened both when she saw his worried expression.

"W-what's with that face?" Helga joked, standing up straight even though the pain was killing her.

_Don't look at me like that...I can't stand it! You look like Arnold when you do that…_

"I'm fine; I just have a little stomach ache, is all." She walked towards the class room, her face full of blush and sweat. How was she going to survive a year of this? Behind her, though, Lila looked at her with a scowl. No one was going to get in her way. It was then that she saw Harold, and a large grin grew on her face.

* * *

"Doesn't he remind you of someone?" Harold, Phoebe and Gerald looked at Helga as they sat at a booth in a near by pool hall. It had become their hang out spot since it opened back in the seventh grade. Not just those four hung out there, either. It was the hip spot for their whole high school. Some times Stinky or Sid would join them, or maybe they would even be blessed with a visit from Rhonda, who made the hip place an exception for her 'superior appearance.' Phoebe and Gerald sat on one side as Helga sat with Harold on the other.

"Who, Helga?" Gerald asked as Helga focused on stirring her milk shake. She didn't feel like drinking it, her stomach was still in knots. Harold yawned, and prepared to put his arm behind Helga's shoulders, but she grabbed his arm and squeezed it hard without even bothering to look. He had been striving to go out with her for weeks, but alas, she refused. He pulled it back quickly as Helga lowered her own arm to looked back at Phoebe and Gerald, who were laughing nervously.

"You know…Bobby." Helga said, almost in a whisper, "Doesn't he remind you of…Arnold?" The three blinked, switching looks before lowering their eyebrows to Helga.

"Actually…no, we don't…" Gerald said, the other two nodding in agreement. "He may have some similar points, but…" Helga leaned forward.

"But when I first saw him, I noticed his smile as you guys were talking. Didn't it give you the same feeling that Arnold gave you?" Harold glared at Bobby in his mind. Lila had told him that Helga had secretly fallen for Harold, but when Bobby came, she decided that she couldn't choose between the two. He didn't believe what Lila said at first, but now he was unsure. Was Helga really interested in that jerk? He wouldn't allow it! She had to go out with him, and only him; even if it meant that he had to break her down.

"Your feelings for Arnold and our feelings for Arnold are completely different." Helga stopped twirling the straw and looked at Harold in shock. It was in seventh grade when she confessed at a sleep over that her first love had been Arnold. She had stopped bulling people by then, so everyone had heard about it, but Harold didn't have to make it sound like such a bad thing!

"W…what the heck was that for?!" Helga asked, slamming her fist down. "What's your deal, Harold?!" Harold looked at her, his eyes narrowed with jealousy.

"We know you still like the football headed kid."

"And so what if I do?! I have a right to like any guy I want!" Harold slammed his fist down just as hard and responded coldly.

"Do you know how many guys like you? Do you think it's fair to lead them on like you do?" Helga glared at Harold and stood up. She looked at her milkshake and finally found a suitable place for it: on Harold's head. She dumped it on him, leaving the cup on his head like a hat.

"I don't lead anyone on! If they confess to me, I turn them down kindly so that they can move on! I made a deal with you because _you_ wouldn't move on!" Harold jumped up at the mention of the deal, and slammed the cup on the ground. When he had confessed to her half way through the first quarter, she had rejected him kindly. Harold, though, wouldn't take a no; so they made a deal: if Arnold didn't return by the end of third quarter, she'd go out with him. But if Helga was right, and Bobby was Arnold, Harold would never get the chance, and he didn't want that at all! Gerald stood up quickly, trying to calm Harold down.

"Okay, you're both mad, so just cool down for a bit. Harold, let's get that milkshake out of your hair. Phoebe, take Helga home." But Helga held up her hand, insisting that she went alone.

"I'm fine. You stay here and enjoy yourselves. I'm out of here." With that, she stomped away.

As she reached the near by stop light, she crouched down near the ground, groaning. Her stomach was in dire pain now.

"Why won't this pain go away?" She asked in a whisper, her eyelids squeezed shut so hard that she saw stars. The light changed to red, and the walking sign gave her the okay to cross. She stood up weakly and prepared to cross, until she noticed the street she was standing on. Staring down the familiar street to her left, she turned from the main street and followed the leftward street. The memorable setting set her at ease for a while; her stomach even agreed to calm down as her head filled with flash backs. She passed the baseball field that her friends and she cherished for so long. Though it was empty most of the time now, every once in a while they met up and played a friendly game just for old time's sake. She giggled to herself, wondering if Gerald had named it after himself back then; he was the first one that suggested turning it into their baseball field. She looked down the alley way where she had written 'Arnold loves Helga,' but had then quickly erased her name and put in Lila when she heard others coming. She sighed, regretting that move, but then quickly thought of something else when she found herself stopping in front of a boarding house. She stared at the green building, noticing that the paint was chipping worse than ever, and even the door looked welted and old. She sighed, wondering how Grandpa and Grandma were doing. Grandma's hyper spirit went away quickly when Arnold had left; Grandpa was just never the same. Some of the younger kids joked that he was going insane, but Helga and her buddies new better, and would chase them away. But soon, her friends lost interest as they grew older, and even the younger kids grew bored with their taunts, and the grandparents melted away from their memories. But Helga never forgot them; she'd stop by on Christmas day every year and spend an hour or so with them, just sitting down by the fire and talking. It was only then that they would allow one of Arnold's old classmates come in; otherwise, they said, was too painful. Helga knew that feeling all too well, she felt the same pain that his grandparents did; only her love was a one-sided feeling. She sighed but then grunted as her stomach ache returned. She gripped her stomach and turned to walk back to her house, only to notice a person standing in front of her. She blinked and looked up to see no one other than Bobby. He had taken the plaid shirt off and tied it around his waist, and his hair had been pulled back. Her heart stopped for a moment before she found her cheeks reddening. Wasn't it funny on how Bobby was the cause of all her pain, but at the same time, all her joy?

"Helga?" He looked at her strangely as she attempted to keep her posture.

"H…Hey…What are you doing here?" She asked. She really shouldn't have gone to the pool hall in the first place, maybe then she wouldn't have been stuck there, looking like an idiot with Bobby. But Bobby didn't seem to notice. He only lifted the bag in his hand and grinned.

"Me? I just got back from the store. And you?" Another sharp pain hit her stomach, and Helga fell to her knees. Bobby dropped the bag he was holding and quickly helped her up. "Helga, are you okay?" She quickly stood up and nodded.

"I…I'm fine."

"You were doing that at school, too. You shouldn't push yourself so much." Helga felt veins popping out of her head. What was wrong wit this guy?

"It's your fault!" She screamed as she turned around to face Bobby. "You were so mean to me this morning, and now you're being so caring and nice! You're sending me on an emotional roller coaster, and I hate roller coasters in general!" Bobby looked at her, his nose scrunched up and his eyebrows lowered.

"What are you yelling at me for? I noticed that you were sick, and I wanted to help."

"Who asked you anyway?!" Helga stopped quickly and covered her mouth. "I'm sorry; I didn't mean to be so rude…" Bobby only sighed to himself before looking at her; he was getting agitated.

"I'm sorry that my personality means I'm really cold-blooded, as you seem to see it." Helga stepped back; she really hadn't meant for it to come out like that. How did he manage to get her so twisted? She looked at the ground, sweat dripping off of her nose. Her breathing became uneasy as she tried to take another step back, but Bobby grabbed her wrist. "Now, come inside." Helga looked at him strangely as he looked away from her, blush tugging at his cheeks. "I'm sure Gramps can help you out." She lifted her head up quickly.

"Gramps…?"

"You know him, right? The old guy with his crazy wife that live here?" Helga nodded, but looked at him strangely.

"I…I know him…but how do you?" Bobby put her arm around his neck before responding as they climbed up the stairs.

"Me? I live here now; they gave me the attic. It's actually a cool little place, and I don't have to pay much for it." Bobby opened the door and called out for Grandma, who swept in wearing her Tarzan outfit. Helga almost fainted; she hadn't seen that old outfit in a really long time.

"Grandma!" She turned to look at Helga, pushed up her glasses, and then jumped closer.

"The Princess of Unibrow city! How lovely to see you again." After disregarding the nickname she was suddenly given, she looked at Grandma, who had finally gained some weight again and looked healthier.

"Grandma, I'm so glad you're doing better."

"But you don't look so good, princess!" Being reminded of her pain, another stab attacked her and she groaned.

"I…I'll be fine…" She said, waving her hand. "I can get home—" But Bobby refused to let go of her hand. She looked at their linked hands and tried to pull away. "I—I said I'll be fine, Bobby! Let go!"

"I may be cold-blooded, but I will not allow you to go until you eat or drink something that Grandma has made." When Helga began to complain, he sent her a glare. "Let's get this straight: _you_ are sick. I can't let you go out there at this time of night in your condition!" Helga held up her fist and he continued, "Don't get me wrong, I'm sure you could fend for yourself; if you were healthy." Helga lowered her fist and looked at Bobby strangely, but finally sighed, giving in.

"Well…I guess I could eat something…" Bobby grinned, and let go of her hand; Helga hadn't realized that he still had been holding it until now. As he walked in to the kitchen, she touched her hand softly, still feeling the warmth from his hand. He poked his head back out and ushered her in with his hand.

"Come on! Hurry up!"


	3. Fight

The floor boards were still creaking, and the boarding house was still silent. All of the boarding rooms were locked; all of the old members of the family had left. Only Bobby, Grandma and Grandpa lived here now. But that wasn't what bothered Helga.

_Strange_. Helga stared at Bobby as she quietly drank a cup of tea. He had been quiet since they sat down in the kitchen, and now didn't even look at her. She wondered; was he going to be rude to her again if she tried a conversation? A small sigh escaped her mouth before she blinked. Her stomach ache was going away.

"Grandma, what is this tea?" She asked, turning to the elderly woman who was stirring oatmeal in a pot and humming. She turned with a smile.

"A brew back from nineteen twenty five, when I thought I was down for the count…" She began to pose, and Bobby and Helga both sighed as she began to go on with one of her stories. "It was my nemesis and I. We were staring at each other, barely able to see in the dark, cramped space. Water surrounded the boat we sat on, and it was silent…I was ready to pounce—" It was then that Grandpa came in, saying hello to Bobby and then petting Helga's head before confronting his wife.

"Pookie that was when we were in the tunnel of love!" As Bobby and Helga stifled laughs (and failed, might I add), 'Pookie' hissed.

"And I shall never forget my loss! You stole a kiss from me that day!" As Grandpa sighed happily at the memory, Helga raised her hand, "Yes, young grasshopper?"

"What does this have to do with the tea?" They were silent; Grandpa moved back to the living room, and Grandma followed, saying something about 'not letting her nemesis get away.' Helga turned to switch a look with Bobby before they both chuckled.

"I don't think I'll ever understand those two…" Bobby said with a sigh, putting one arm on the chair's back. Helga leaned forward, her hands still wrapped around the warm mug of tea.

"Oh yeah," Bobby looked at her with a blink, "I've been meaning to ask you something." He pulled his arm from the chair to the table, and leaned forward like she was.

"What is that?" He mocked with a grin, attempting to mimic her girlie voice. Though she had a strong urge to hit him, she continued.

"Why did you tell the teacher that we knew each other already? Wouldn't you have preferred someone else? Like Gerald or Phoebe?" Bobby's joking face fell to a frown. Helga cursed in her head; wrong question at the wrong time.

"It doesn't matter now." He said, looking away, slouching back in his seat. Helga growled; it mattered to her!

"What's with that attitude? You were all jokie-jokie until now! Tell me!" Bobby looked at her with a glare, but then grinned coldly.

"Alright, fine. You want to know why?" He stood up and walked over to her. Helga looked at him in caution; what was he planning? He pulled her chair out and faced it towards him so that he could lean over her, his hands gripping the sides tightly. She looked at his hands, which were pale from gripping so tightly. "Let's play a game. Try to guess." His eyes glinted like sparks ready to start a fire.

"Y…You're angry…" Bobby leaned in, a cold grin still plastered on his face,

"Oh come on, Helga! Try to guess _why_ I'm angry." His sarcastic voice was hissing at her; she was a little shocked. She had her share of bitter moments, but this took the cake. Helga looked away for a moment, but then looked back up at him. She had to get out of this little game; she could tell that he had a short temper, and she was already working on his nerves; but her fists were clenched; if he tried anything she was ready to fight.

"How am I supposed to know? Isn't that why I asked you?" His eyes narrowed before he bent close to her face. She could smell his cologne; she could feel his breath. His eyes glittered with bits of rage, fear, sadness, doubt, stress, disappointment, but most of all, loneliness. He was leaning in closer, not letting their eye contact break. His eyes were frightening, but at the same time, capturing.

"Oh," He whispered, his lips near hers, "and did I mention that if you answer wrong, I get a kiss?" His lower lip brushed on hers, but she turned her head to the side quickly. Bobby lifted his head back up, and smirked at her stubborn eyes that stared at the wall. "You're no fun." He let go of the chair's sides and turned away from Helga, shoving his hands in his pockets as he looked up at the ceiling. Helga looked at him in silence. Why, she still wondered, had he picked her?

He was lonely, she could see that, but it still didn't explain why he had chosen her! It was a simple question, so why did he have to make it so complicated? She sighed, and made herself calm down and think. Maybe he was comfortable around her. Maybe he wasn't comfortable with the others at school yet. But you'd think that she would be the hardest to get comfortable with…did he see otherwise? Helga sighed quietly; it made no sense. She looked at the tall boy's back before standing up. All she knew was that his eyes carried the worst emotions known to man; it looked as though he hadn't felt joy in a long time. She began to feel guilt; he was just looking for someone to be with; him and his lonely eyes. After gathering some courage, she opened her mouth to speak, but Bobby turned to her with a glare.

"Leave." She blinked, but then took a step towards him.

"Wait, I wanted to tell you something else—" Bobby snorted, turning to her with a scowl.

"We already played that game, Helga. You lost." Helga felt her rage boil inside of her. She was sick of his depressing atmosphere; she didn't want to be part of it! Maybe it was her fault, but she had tried to redeem herself, but he was the one who continued it!

Stomping up to him, she stopped in front of him before slapping his face. He staggered back, glared at her, and slapped her back in response. She stared at him with a glare. "What did you slap me for?!" He yelled before Grandpa and Grandma came back in quickly, hearing the argument escalade to yelling. Helga didn't stop.

"You are so depressing! It's not like I asked for your life story! I just wanted to know why you would want a girl like me to show you around!" Bobby laughed sarcastically before glaring at her again.

"Fine, I'll tell you!" He snapped, "You just looked so pathetic, trying to act as someone you're not! I wanted to make fun of you, and it worked!" Helga's eyes widened, and for once, she was quiet. Grandpa moved to touch Bobby's shoulder as Grandma quickly ran over to Helga.

"Helga, are you alright?" Helga nodded to the elderly lady and looked at Grandpa trying to talk to Bobby, who was still angry. She expected him to calm down for Grandpa, but instead he did the opposite.

"Bobby, calm down, boy. You're upsetting Helga—" Bobby only slapped Grandpa's hand away, and started to walk out of the room. Helga lifted her eyes from the ground before ran after him.

"Don't you dare touch Grandpa like that!" She yelled before grabbing his shoulder and twirling him around. His eyes were wide with rage, but then again, so were Helga's. The grandparents ran out to the hallway, but Helga held her hand up to them as they neared the two teens. "Don't worry, I'll be fine. I just won't allow him to treat you like this! He's acting like a baby!" Turning her outstretched hand into a fist, she threw it into his face as hard as she could; causing blood to run down his nose, and Bobby seemed to finally snap. He punched her back even harder, and blood trickled down her lip. After standing up again and spitting to the side, she tackled him to the ground, punching him until he grabbed her arms and pushed her underneath him.

"Why can't you just shut up?" He yelled, slamming her arms to the ground as she squirmed to get free. She glared at him, frustrated tears tugging at the corner of her eyes.

"Because," She yelled, "You can taunt me all you want, but when you mess with Arnold's family, I will kick your ass!" She slammed her leg up between his and he froze, barely able to stifle his scream. Falling to the ground, he let go of Helga to cradle his glory. She huffed as she sat up and glared at him.

"Y…You…"

"Have you…finally…calmed down…?" She asked him between wheezes as he glared at her weakly. His eyes narrowed before he turned his face, his hot forehead resting on the cool wooden floor. Everything seemed to go in circles as he tried to suck up some of the pain. He shut his eyes tightly, biting his lower lip. "I'll take that as a yes." He looked back at Helga.

"I…don't get it…w…why are you so mad?" She stood up with Grandma's help before she turned to look at him again. "What does it matter…if they're some kid's grandparents?" She wiped her bleeding lip and put a hand on her hip.

"You're new around here, so I guess you don't know," Helga flipped a strand of hair over her shoulder before grinning; "I love Arnold." Bobby's eyes widened as he stared at Helga from the ground. His pitch black rage melted away as she grinned down at him. "And I won't have you messing up his family while he's gone, so don't try it again, or next time I may not leave you anything down there!" His eyes narrowed as he looked at the blonde girl. Hadn't they just fought? So then why was she smiling down at him? Did she think she was better than him? Helga bent down to him, and he jumped a little before she extended her hand. "I'll only forgive you this one time." He stared at her for a moment before smiling pitifully to himself before he took her hand. He wiped his nose. What was he doing? He had just fought with a girl who only wanted a stupid question answered. How pathetic. Grandpa walked over to him, but Bobby didn't move.

"…Sorry Gramps, I didn't hurt you, did I?" Grandpa only smiled before shaking his head.

"It'll take more than a little shove to knock me down!" He joked before Bobby smiled. Helga nodded, pleased with the outcome, before her phone began to ring. She looked at her phone nervously, knowing it was her dad.

"…H-hello?"

"Do you know what time it is?!" Bob screamed in to the phone. Helga rolled her eyes before answering.

"It's only nine thirty!"

"Exactly! Where are you?!" She paused for a moment. What would he say if he knew that she was at a boy's house? "Well?!"

"I-I'm at Phoebe's house!"

"Why couldn't you call me if you were staying over at her house?!" Helga sighed.

"Fine, I'll tell you now! I'm staying over at Phoebe's."

"Why can't you be more like your sister, Olga? She never gave me these problems—"

"I'm hanging up, Bob." Helga sighed again as hung up. She was so sick of him always doing that; it made her wish that she lived with her mom. Her parents had gotten divorced while she was in sixth grade, and her dad some how got custody (not that either cared). She looked up to see Bobby and the Grandparents staring, and she smiled. "Sorry, I have to make a phone call really quick…" She turned around, dialing Phoebe's number.

"Hello?"

"Pheebs, it's me, Helga."

"Helga! Are you feeling better? I know Harold was working up your nerves earlier…"

"Huh? Oh, that? I forgot about that fight already." Phoebe paused.

"Did you get in another fight?" Helga sighed, if anyone acted like a mother, it was Phoebe.

"I'll tell you about it later. Can I sleep over at your house tonight?" There was a silence.

"I'm sorry, Helga…it's just that my cousins are here and my parents are ready to go crazy with all the kids here." Helga sighed, slapping her forehead.

"I-its okay, Pheebs. I'll talk to you later."

"I'm sorry…"

"Don't apologize! It's okay, I said!" With a last goodbye, she hung up before sighing loudly. "Crap…what am I going to do?"

"Why don't you spend the night over here?" Helga turned to Grandma, who was smiling as the males dropped their jaws.

"G-Grandma, what are you thinking?"

"Y-yeah! Pookie, they just got in a fight!" Both Helga and Grandma ignored the two.

"Is that really okay?" She asked, and Grandma nodded. Bobby and Grandpa looked at each other as they were ignored. "Ah, but I don't have pajamas…"

"That's alright! Bobby, you can lend her some of your pajamas." Bobby stared at the two girls before giving in.

"Okay, whatever. Just leave me out of this woman thing…I give up." Grandma and Helga chuckled as he turned, limped over to pull down the attic stairs, and turned back around to usher Helga. "Well, come on, then. I'm not your butler." Helga crossed her arms and walked over to Bobby before pulling him off the stairs. "H-hey!" She flicked his nose and he yelped, holding it with his free hand. "What the heck was that for?"

"We need to put some meat on your nose and my lip." The two looked at each other's faces, noticing the puffy noses and lips, and began to laugh at each other before looking in the mirror, and walking towards the kitchen in silence. Grandma regained her hyper attitude and ran in to the kitchen, screaming about 'the war.'

"We need meat, soldiers! Meat for the wounded!" She yelled as Helga and Bobby followed her back into the kitchen. As they waited for Grandma to slice the meat, Helga thought about the crazy night. It went from kind, to sarcastic, to violent, and then to understanding. Wow. Never would have expected this series of events to happen.

"Helga!" She blinked and looked to Bobby, who was holding a piece of meat to her. "Geez, you zone out a lot, don't you?" She snatched the meat out of his hand as a response. He raised his hands in defense before rolling his eyes. "Sheesh, touchy touchy…" Though Helga didn't let him know, she was glad that he wasn't angry with her anymore. He was so calm now; it seemed like he was a 'tough love' kind of guy. Grandma looked at the two and giggled.

"It's only a matter of time…" Helga turned with the meat already on her lip.

"What did you say, Grandma?" But she only shook her head before sending the pair upstairs.

"Soldier one," That meant Bobby, "let her sleep on your couch. It folds out to a bed, doesn't it?" Bobby sighed, not happy with her decision, but nodded none the less. They stood up, and Bobby began to limp towards the stairs. Helga caught up and leaned forward as they walked so that she could look at his face. He was biting his lower lip, and his eyes looked forward in determination, as if trying not to cry. Helga giggled; he was in so much pain still that he didn't notice her at all. She was ready to get his attention, but then she remembered about her 'Bobby is Arnold' theory. It was now or never, and it'd determine if she was right. What could she lose? If he looked at her strangely, she could always say it was an accident. She stopped walking once they got up the stairs, and took a deep breath.

"A-Arnold!" Bobby turned, blinking at Helga.

"Why are you yelling?" He asked, raising an eyebrow. Helga's shoulders fell as she looked at Bobby with a fake smile quickly.

"Ah, no…sorry, I was just thinking about Arnold…I meant to say Bobby…" Bobby only chuckled before looking at her again.

"Who would call to the guy they just kicked…with the name of the man they loved?" Helga stared at him as he walked over to his dresser, and pulled out the smallest pair of pants he had, and a long shirt. Turning, he handed them to her and walked to the bathroom. "I'll be in here, knock when you're done changing." She nodded before he closed the door, leaving her alone in Arnold's old room. She sighed, closing the bedroom door before unbuttoning her shirt. Just the thought of her being in Arnold's room used to make her heart flutter; now she was ready to have a heart attack. She looked around, remembering how she had crashed in to the room after getting the tape from the phone; she was afraid that Arnold and his friends would hear her unintended confession. She sighed quietly, feeling a little sad and disappointed. She was almost positive that Bobby was Arnold, but it seemed like it would only remain a theory.

After changing, she looked in the mirror at herself. Some how, these clothes seemed to fit her more than the semi-girly clothes she wore everyday. After taking her hair down, she knocked on the bathroom door.

"You can come out now." Bobby opened the door immediately, as if he had been waiting for a while.

"Why do girls always take so long?" He asked, jumping on to his bed with a sigh. Helga coughed loudly, and Bobby looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "What?"

"A blanket would be nice." Bobby sighed, as if she was asking for the world. Her eyebrow twitched, and he got up.

"Fine, fine! Here, use this one." He stood up, taking the blanket from his bed and handing it to her.

"Thanks." She noticed Bobby staring at her chest, and she shrieked, throwing the blanket in his face. "Pervert! What the heck is wrong with you?" He sat up, his hair pointing this way and that as his eyes seeming to go in circles. Growling, he responded.

"I wasn't looking at your chest!" He snapped, "I was looking at your necklace!" Helga blinked, and pulled out the necklace she had had for many years. It had dents and scratches, but still she kept it around her neck. Holding it up for her to look at again, she stroked its side as she looked at the football headed boy inside of it. "…What happened between you and Arnold?" Her eyes narrowed sadly as he asked her the question, and she sat down on the couch slowly, not letting go of the necklace.

"Nothing happened between us." She said, almost in a whisper. Bobby was a little surprised by her gentle approach to the topic, he had been expecting some yelling and a couple of punches, but none came. "…Back in fourth grade, he left us…"

"What? He left?" She nodded, "Why?"

"Nobody knows. During the summer, he vanished without a trace. He didn't even say goodbye to us…not to Gerald, or Harold…or even Lila, who he had a crush on." She sighed, and squeezed the locket. "And definitely not me…." For a moment, the two were silent as Helga gazed at her love's face. How time had flown, she thought. "I wonder where he is right now…and how he's doing…" She sighed one last time before tucking her locket under the baggy shirt and out of sight.

"Helga, you haven't explained to me why you're waiting for him." She chuckled lightly, closing her eyes. "So many guys at school would die to be with you, especially Harold." He mumbled something to himself before continuing, "So why are you waiting for someone when you don't even know where he is?" It was a good question, even she wasn't sure. Since she had first met him on the way to kindergarten, she was head over heels in love with Arnold. The way he kindly smiled at her, even as she was covered in mud; he was like a saint to her. She opened her eyes, and answered Bobby, finally.

"Heh…I wonder sometimes, too."


	4. trying to face the facts is hard

XD I'm so excited about this story! This chapter is seventeen pages long! YAY!

And please continue to review my story! If you have any questions or concerns, please do ask away! So many people are making good points that will help me write better!

And sorry if the chapter seems a little sloppy...I am just so excited about this! XD

-- KitaxHaku

* * *

Helga woke up before Bobby. After last night, she had expected to be more tired than usual, but instead, she actually felt a little refreshed. She told herself it was the fight (relieving stress physically, maybe?), but inside, she knew that it was the talk about Arnold. Though she knew her friends missed Arnold a lot like her, after they found out that she liked him, they refused to bring him up, as if he were a curse. Bobby was the first one to talk to her about it, and ask her all of the questions Phoebe should have asked long ago.

She sat up from the couch, and looked over to Arnold's old bed, only to find Bobby not on it, but instead on the floor. She stood up, and shook Bobby roughly. As he opened his eyes, she noticed that although she was refreshed, he wasn't as lucky.

"W…What the heck Helga? What time is it?" She slapped the side of his head, and pointed to the empty bed.

"Why aren't you on your bed?" He scratched his head before looking away, blush hanging on his cheeks.

"…I felt bad about letting you sleep on the couch…half way through the night, I ended up falling asleep here." Helga blinked but then grinned at him; at least he had _some_ good points. He sighed before getting up. "Well, now I'm awake. Are you taking a shower first?" She shrugged, but nodded all the same.

"That's fine. But I don't have any clean clothes." Bobby blinked.

"What's wrong with the ones you wore yesterday?" She sighed, rubbing her forehead.

"You're such a guy…"

* * *

"Good morning Grandma and Grandpa!" Helga chimed as she walked in to the kitchen with her jeans from the day before and one of Bobby's shirts. His shirt fit over her like a dress, and its boyish blue color made it seem even more obvious that she was borrowing a boy's shirt. She took a deep breath as if stretching just to secretly get another sniff of Bobby's cologne; it smelled so good, as if she were in a prairie full of flowers. Her smile widened as she picked up her phone and house key from the table. The elderly couple sang a hello, happy that the house wasn't so quiet anymore. Bobby followed her in to the kitchen, though, pouting.

"She used all of the hot water…" He grunted as Helga rolled her eyes before returning her attention to the grandparents.

"Well, I guess I'll be going now. Thank you for letting me spend the night!" Helga said, giving Grandma a quick hug. The three blinked at her.

"Helga, why don't I just give you a ride to school?" Helga blinked. "That's okay with you, isn't it?" She scratched her head while grinning in embarrassment.

"Oh…I just didn't know you had a car." The truth was, she was a little nervous to show up to school with Bobby. What would they say if they noticed that both of them had bruises? They'd be screwed, especially if Harold noticed. But then, Helga contradicted herself; what did it matter if Harold noticed? He had just insulted her in the worst way last night, so what was it to him if she came to school with another guy, or with bruises? Bobby called out to Helga before she began to chuckle coldly. "Okay, Bobby. Let's go!" Saying goodbye to Grandma and Grandpa, she pulled Bobby out of the boarding house, excited.

"W-wait! I didn't get to eat breakfast!" Bobby stuttered as he tried to catch his balance.

"Oh we'll grab something on the way, then!" Helga said before closing the door behind them.

* * *

Helga sat in Bobby's car as he finished paying for a donut and two cups of coffee. As he came back in the car, he handed her a cup of coffee. She cringed at the sight of it, and shoved it away.

"Thanks, but…"

"Don't worry its decaf coffee." Helga blinked before taking the coffee, and murmuring a thank you.

"Were you able to tell?" Bobby blinked, looking over at her as he started the car again.

"Tell what?"

"That my stomach ache was from coffee?" He laughed,

"No, I just recalled on how you were grumpy because you drank four cups of coffee." She hissed at him,

"It was only three!" He only laughed again before putting his coffee down to a cup holder. As he began to drive to school, he found himself laughing and joking with Helga along the way. He had to admit, he liked Helga's company. At first, he really was just trying to get on her nerves, but now he felt attached to her. Maybe it was respect, because she stood up to him when he was being a jerk. The reason he wasn't sure, but he didn't want it to go away just yet; it was the first time in years since he'd been happy and peaceful. Something told him that Helga felt the same way, despite their constant arguing.

* * *

They arrived at school early, and so they decided to drop their things off in the room, and give Bobby a _proper_ tour now that they weren't going at each other's necks. As they stepped out of the room, Helga almost ran in to Harold. Both of them jerked back, causing Helga to bump in to Bobby, who caught her from falling. Harold growled at their contact, but began to freak out when he noticed Helga's bruises.

"Helga, what happened to your face?" He asked in a yell. He looked at the shirt she wore, and pointed with rage hanging in his face. All of Harold's morals snapped in the air; when it came to Helga and other guys, they meant nothing. "And whose shirt is that?!" But Helga only stuck her nose up, and pulled Bobby away.

"Hurry up, Bobby!" She said loudly, "Or else I won't be able to show you the whole school!" Bobby gained his stance before following her, still looking back at Harold, who was glaring with all of his might. Harold pointed his finger at Bobby but then brought it up to his own neck, pulling it side ways across his throat. After Harold walked in to the class room, Bobby looked at Helga again, who was still speed walking.

"Helga…?" She continued to walk even as Bobby called her name. "Helga?" No answer. "Helga!" Bobby yelled as he grabbed her hand and pulled her to a stop. She snapped out of her angry daze and looked at Bobby with a scowl.

"What?" She snapped before Bobby glared at her.

"Don't 'what' me! You just ignored me three times! I just wanted to know what the deal between you and Harold is!" Once realizing that he was yelling, he coughed. "N-not that I care, but I just want to know…" Helga, not noticing his embarrassed stutter, only sighed.

"I don't want to get anyone else involved. It's between Harold and me." She said before turning to continue walking. "Come on, I'll give you the tour now." Bobby stayed in his spot, upset. She turned to him again and raised an eyebrow. "What is it now?" He shot a glare at her before turning around. Had their talk last night not done anything for her? Did she not trust him? Maybe he had her figured out all wrong, maybe she was still just a selfish girl, like he thought. Helga, realizing the source of his bitterness, reached out to him. "I-it's not that I don't trust you, Bobby…I just—" Bobby rolled his eyes and looked at Helga with another glare. It was too late to take things back. He walked away without another word, and Helga slapped her forehead. Great, just great. They were getting along just fine until she stopped thinking. "Idiot…" She whispered to herself before turning to catch up with him. But a boy stood in front of her with a grin plastered on his face. She scowled; it was Harold. "Oh, it's you. What do you want?" She walked around him but he followed.

"Me? Oh, I was just watching you argue with the new kid." Harold snickered before Helga turned to hiss at him.

"His name isn't 'the new kid,' its Bobby!" Helga yelled. Harold stopped walking, and looked at her as if she were a fool.

"Well, well, well, aren't you getting fresh? I thought you hated his guts when he first came. 'Wonder what got you so close?" When Helga sent him a harsh glare, he changed the subject. "Well you seem to be getting along with him now, anyhow. Just like Arnold, I would think." Helga looked at him with wide eyes.

"Y…you…" But she stopped herself before she turned away from him. She didn't move, though; her feet felt like lead all of a sudden. Harold grinned, it was time to attack.

"You think he looks like Arnold, don't you?" Harold's grin widened, "I bet if he knew, he'd think you were a freak." He laughed, "You act just like you used to when Arnold was here." Helga's teeth gritted as he said the clear words. It was true, she saw Arnold every time Bobby stood in front of her, but she couldn't help but find a connection between the two. Finally, she found her feet and she walked towards the class room in silence. "Oh, and Helga," She stopped for a moment, and turned her head to him. He grinned, "Don't forget our deal. Just a couple of weeks until the third quarter begins." She turned her head around in silence and began to walk again. It didn't matter anymore; Harold had won.

* * *

Bobby stepped out of the classroom and found himself feeling a little guilty. He knew that Helga hadn't meant anything bad when she refused to tell him her problems; she was just raised to be an independent woman. And by the conversation he over heard from her and her father last night, it seemed all the more obvious that she wasn't asked 'what's wrong,' often. Lifting his head, he noticed Helga walking towards the room.

"Hey, Helga!" Helga jumped at his voice as he walked closer to her. What should she say? What should she do? How should she act? She didn't want to be distant towards him, but then again, she didn't want to be so close to him that she saw Arnold. She wasn't sure, so she gave a small smile to stall.

"H-hey…what's up?" She stuttered. Bobby rubbed the back of his head and apologized.

"I should have known that you wouldn't have wanted to touch that subject, sorry." Helga, still wearing the same smile, nodded.

"Its okay, Bobby. I don't mind. It was my fault for being so protective." Crossing her arms, she smiled with bitterness towards herself," It doesn't really matter, now." Bobby blinked before leaning in, startling Helga. Her eyes held a painful and panicked look, as if she was stuck on an island by herself. Her eyes shook uncontrollably before she looked away from Bobby.

"…Helga, what's wrong? You're so quiet."

"W-what? Oh, it must be the coffee from this morning. Decaf makes me drowsy sometimes…" At that moment, Helga spotted Phoebe, and she ran around Bobby to grab her friend's hand. She turned quickly to Bobby, who was still frozen in his place. "I'll see you in class, Bobby." He turned to stare at her as she ran away with Phoebe blinking in confusion behind.

"Helga? Oh my goodness, what happened to your face?!"

* * *

"What's going on, Helga?" Phoebe looked at Helga as they sat on the counters of the bathroom sinks. Helga sighed, looking to her Asian friend for comfort. Harold had really gotten the best of her, and now her friendly feelings for Bobby were unsure. What was she to do? She noticed how he looked at her in shock when she ran away. She knew that he would be angry when she entered the classroom, and that he wouldn't want to talk to her. But what could she do? She was stuck trying to figure out how to separate them a little without pushing him completely away. "Helga?" Helga snapped out of her thoughts, and looked at Phoebe again with a troubled expression; one that Phoebe didn't see often.

"What should I do, Pheebs?" Helga asked in a hushed panic. "Harold was right; I'm only being like this because I see Arnold in Bobby! I shouldn't be treating him like this; I know he's not Arnold, but..." She rubbed her head roughly, her hair frizzing. "I don't want to ignore him, but I don't want him to get the wrong idea!" She let out a frustrated growl before Phoebe stopped Helga from pulling out more of her hair. After calming Helga down, Phoebe spoke.

"Helga, you shouldn't let whatever Harold said get to you." Helga grabbed Phoebe's arms and shook them in panic.

"But that's why I'm freaking out! I let them get to me, and now I'm a wreck! I can't do anything alone, not with the way I am now!" Phoebe tried to calm her down, but she only muttered to herself. "Phoebe," Her grip on Phoebe tightened, "Promise me that today you'll help me avoid Bobby!" Phoebe blinked, and then found herself panicking.

"H-Helga, I'm horrible at that kind of stuff! Why don't we talk to Rhonda—"

"No!" Helga yelled before covering her mouth quickly. After looking around, she returned to whispering. "D-don't let anybody know that I'm being like this. I may have become more feminine, but I still have my pride..." Phoebe sighed as she looked at Helga. What was she to do with her? After a moment, she smiled lightly, taking her friend's hands.

"I...I'll try my best, but I can't guarantee anything!" Helga smiled brightly and wrapped her arms around her oldest friend.

"Thank you, Phoebe!" Phoebe pulled out of the hug, and looked at Helga with a raised eyebrow.

"Now, you'll have to explain what's wrong with your face! You've got bruises every where!"

* * *

"Hey you guys..." Jerald approached Herald and Bobby, who were glaring at each other. "Uh...are you having a glaring contest?" The two turned their glares to him before he waved his hands in the air. "W-what ever, man...I'm staying out of this." He sat in his seat and watched the two continue until Bobby stopped quickly to look towards the door when the bell rang. Harold quickly followed his gaze as the two spotted Helga and Phoebe entering with the 'just on time' crowd. Helga, noticing the two staring, quickly grabbed Phoebe's arm and the two began to talk, not looking towards the boys. Bobby lowered his head for a moment before hearing Harold snicker, and in response he sent one more glare to him before facing forward. Helga and Phoebe whispered last things to each other before sitting down. Helga was tense as she attempted to sit down coolly. Bobby and Harold both noticed this, and both of them said hi to her at the same time. Helga stiffened, slowly turned to the two, showed a look of pure pain and confusion, and then turned back around in silence. The two boys began to glare at each other again, and Helga sighed to herself. It was going to be a long day.

* * *

"Jerald, do you think that Helga is acting weird?" Bobby asked as he looked at Helga, who was sitting down with Phoebe at a table far away from the boys (consisting of Stinky, Sid, Jerald, Harold and Bobby). Jerald, in the middle of biting in to a sandwich, raised an eyebrow to his friend. Bobby rested his head on his hand as he leaned on the cafeteria table. "She seems like she's avoiding me or something." As Sid and Stinky taunted him about liking Helga, Bobby only ignored them, waiting for Jerald's answer.

"I don't know, man...you and Harold both have been acting weird, too. I've got no say in this matter." As Jerald returned to eating his sandwich, Harold snickered at Bobby. The poor, poor fool, Harold thought. He had no idea what he was in store for. If things kept going like this, he'd have Helga as soon as the coming Monday! He snickered again.

"What are you snickering at, loser?" Bobby asked with a scowl. Before Harold could respond, Lila sat down between the two. Jerald put his sandwich down and raised his eyebrow again.

"To what do we offer this lovely surprise?" Jerald asked Lila in a rather sarcastic voice. Lila gripped onto Bobby's arm and gave Jerald a fake smile.

"Hello, Jerald! It is ever so nice to see you again! It is, though, even more lovely to see Bobby!" She said, turning her head up to Bobby, only to see him staring away from her, and towards Helga. Lila's smile fell quickly, and Jerald, Stinky and Sid all snickered at her before she glared at them. Letting go of Bobby, she whispered to Harold.

"I thought you separated them!" Harold looked at his partner in crime nervously.

"I-I did...but Bobby doesn't seem to understand that Helga's really avoiding him!" Harold responded quickly. Lila growled.

"You better fix this problem; I don't want Helga in my way anymore!" She snapped in a hushed voice before the group noticed Bobby stand up. "B-Bobby," Lila said sweetly, standing up with him. "Where ever could you be going?" Bobby looked at Helga as she turned away from him quickly. Helga cursed under her breath; they had made eye contact. She had luckily been able to avoid Bobby for the morning classes, but now she had blown up all of her success; he was coming over! Bobby walked over to Helga's side, and put his hands on the table, starling the group of girls at Helga's table. She smiled stiffly up to the blonde boy as he smiled coldly at her.

"Hello, Helga." He said as Lila ran up behind him.

"B-Bobby, I wanted to show you around—" Bobby turned to Lila, glared, and then turned back to Helga.

"Helga, I wanted to ask you a question." Helga blinked, and looked up at him nervously.

"A-a question? What is it?"

"Have you been avoiding me, Helga?" Helga looked down at her half eaten meal, swallowing nervous saliva. What was she supposed to say? 'Oh, yes, because you remind me of this guy who everyone thinks is dead!' She sighed to herself before Bobby leaned towards her. "Well?" She had trouble keeping eye contact with the boy. His eyes drew her in, captivating her profoundly, just like his—

_He's not Arnold!_ She told herself before looking away quickly and answering his question. "N-no..." She whispered, pulling a strand behind her ear. She looked at Phoebe for assistance, but no avail came; Phoebe was clueless on how to help her friend. "I...I'm not trying to avoid you...I'm just a little tired, that's all..." Bobby raised an eyebrow and rested his elbows on the table so that he could stare directly in to her face.

"You're tired." She nodded, "Is that really the best you've got?" He slammed a fist down on the table in anger before walking out of the cafeteria with long strides. Lila, who was still standing by Helga, grinned.

"Oh dear, what ever could be the matter with Bobby?" She asked, looking down at Helga. Lila bent down, and pulled a strand of hair away from Helga's ear so she could whisper in her ear. "Thanks for all your hard work, Helga. I'll take it from here." As she stood up, Helga looked at Lila with a glare.

"Don't try me, Lila. I still have enough tomboy in me to beat you up." After shivering in response, Lila tried to smile a cocky smile before chasing after Bobby. Helga sighed, and threw her head down. What had she done?

* * *

"Yo, Bobby!" Jerald called out to Bobby after school as he walked towards the school lot with Stinky and Sid, "We're about to hit the hoops; you up for a game?" Bobby, who was leaning on his car in the front of the school, shook his head.

"No thanks, Jerald! I'm waiting for someone!" After a shrug and a bye, Jerald and the others left. Bobby turned his head back to watch the school kids file out, and he waited for the one blonde and blue eyed girl.

"I'll see you later, Helga. I have to go straight home today." Phoebe said as Helga and she exited the school. Helga, though still nervous (and paranoid), nodded with a smile for her friend.

"O-okay, Pheebs; see you later." The two nodded to each other and went their separate ways, but Helga stopped when she saw who was in her path. It was too late to turn around; she had already made eye contact with Bobby.

"Yo." Bobby said, taking a hand out of his pocket to wave. Helga nervously smiled at him, and began to walk by him.

"H-hello, Bobby." He opened the passenger seat door and offered her a ride. She shook her head quickly, remembering Lila. "I-it's okay...Lila would get mad, so..." For a moment, Bobby froze. Then, he raised an eyebrow and stared at her in confusion.

"Lila? What does she have to do with anything?" Helga pulled a strand of hair behind her ear; it was becoming a habit, she noticed.

"W...what does she have to do with it, you ask?" She chuckled in a shaky voice, "I mean...she obviously has a crush on you..." Helga couldn't stop the words coming out of her mouth; it was too late. Though she had honestly been avoiding Bobby because of Harold, since lunch she had found herself being extra careful around him and Lila, who were in her after noon classes. The avoiding stance had been taken over by not only jealously, but sadness as well. When Lila had challenged her at lunch, she realized that she didn't want to lose Bobby as a friend. She didn't want to stop thinking of Bobby as Arnold; she wanted to keep dreaming in her wonderland. But even though Bobby stood in front of her now, she could say nothing about these feelings, because she knew that telling him would surely ruin any chances of friendship with him she could have.

Bobby stared at Helga, feeling blood boil in his veins. Had she really been avoiding her because of something that Lila said? He sighed as he leaned on his car, and rubbed his forehead in frustration.

"Are you serious?" He asked her with a scowl. "Are you really upset about something little miss valley girl said?" Helga took a step back and stared at Bobby with wide eyes.

"N-no! It's not just that..." She said before looking down. Everyone at school was gone now; it was just the two of them standing at the edge of the campus. Helga looked up and down the street before turning to her left.

"If it wasn't Lila, then what was it?" Bobby asked, throwing out his hand to the side. Helga only avoided his eyes as she took a step.

"I-I should go..." But Bobby was sick of it. His rage finally took over, and he pulled Helga towards the car. Her back rammed her in to the car door as he held her wrists in his hands. Her eyes were wide with shock as he took deep breaths over her.

"No, you shouldn't go!" He yelled. "You've been 'going' everywhere without me today! I'm sick of you avoiding me when I haven't done anything to you!" Helga shut her eyes tightly. She could have easily kicked him and gotten out of his grip by now, however she felt too bad about avoiding him to only hurt him even more. Opening her eyes, she spoke,

"Y...you're hurting me..." Bobby finally calmed down, and let his head sink down.

"Helga, come on...tell me what is bothering you..." His grip loosened as he took a breath, "please...Helga....I just want to know what is wrong. If I've done something, then tell me, and let me fix it..." He looked up to see Helga's eyes shaking with strong emotion. He let go of her wrists quickly in response, and she slowly fell to her knees as she cradled her arms.

"I...I'm sorry..." Helga said in a hushed voice. "I didn't mean for things to turn out this way...I was just so worried that you'd hate me..." Bobby's eyebrow lifted. Why would he hate her? Right now he hated Lila and himself, but he would never, ever, hate Helga.

"Why would I hate you?" He asked as she looked up at him. Oh, her eyes. They sang out in cries to Bobby. He wanted to help her somehow...he wanted to hold her and tell her everything would be alright. He bent down to her, and took her hands softly in his before helping her up. She stared in to his eyes, realizing all the trouble she had caused him. She didn't want to hurt him anymore.

"You...you remind me of Arnold." Bobby blinked as Helga lowered her head. "Every time I look at you, I see him...I keep thinking, 'maybe he's Arnold,' but..." She let out a small chuckle, unable to finish her thought, and looked up at Bobby. She was an idiot. What was she thinking, involving Bobby in such a hopeless game? He was Bobby. Arnold was dead. The only connection between the two...was her. Her heart tugged, telling her to stop lying, but her mind was adding it up like math:

Bobby wasn't Arnold.

She had been through this statement a million times, but her heart wouldn't let her let it go.

"I love Arnold, Bobby. Nothing will ever change that. That's why I don't want to treat you like Arnold. I don't want to look at you like that, I don't want to sigh as I look in your eyes, and I don't want to hurt you..." Her eyes were watering, but she couldn't look away from Bobby's eyes; she felt like she was letting go of Arnold with each word. "But...honestly...I don't want to let you go, either." She lowered her head, and a tear fell; the stress from today had been too much. There was that, and the pain in her heart.

"Helga...look at me." She shook her head, "Lift your head up." When she refused again, Bobby let go of her hands, and cupped her face in his hands. She blinked, another tear falling as he showed her his gentle face. His eyes narrowed lightly, his smile evenly spread across his cream skin. His hair seemed to glow as the sun shone over his figure. She stared at Bobby with more tears ready to fall. Wasn't it funny? They almost hated each other when they first met each other, and now...they were almost best friends. "Helga, I don't care if you see Arnold instead of me." Helga's tears went away quickly. She lowered her eyebrows angrily. How could he say it so easily?

"What do you mean you don't care?! Of course you do! You don't want me to see Arnold in you—"

"I'm telling you, I don't care." Helga pulled herself away from Bobby's grip. "I like the relationship we have right now. I don't care if it's because you see Arnold." Helga shook her head.

"You don't understand, do you? I don't want to give you the wrong impression! I don't want to make it seem like I love you—" Bobby sighed.

"Love? What are you talking about?" Helga blinked as Bobby spoke while raising an eyebrow in confusion, "Okay, so maybe Arnold and I look alike, but so what? You never hit on me, and I never hit on you. We're friends, Helga, that's all." He grinned at the crying girl in front of him, and chuckled. "Besides, I think you deserve a break. You've been waiting since fourth grade for this guy to come back, right? You should be allowed to at least pretend to see him." Helga hugged Bobby quickly after he said that. Finally, someone understood.

"Bobby..." She looked up from the hug and smiled widely, "thank you..." As Bobby blinked, but then hugged her back, some one started to clap loudly.

"Aw, how cute," Helga and Bobby looked up from the hug and to their left to see Harold a couple of feet away. Helga pulled out of the hug to glare at Harold.

"What are you doing here?" Helga asked before Harold blinked as he walked up to them.

"I was waiting at your house to discuss our plans, but you never showed up." Helga glared at Harold as Bobby turned to face him.

"Plans?" Bobby asked, looking down at Helga. "What is he talking about?" Helga only looked away in silence. Harold snickered.

"You haven't told him yet, Helga?" Bobby looked at Helga, worried, but she only glared at Harold.

"You're a horrible person!" She yelled to Harold, who only raised an eyebrow.

"Maybe, but you're the one that agreed to date me." Bobby stared at Helga with wide eyes.

"You're...dating him?" Helga's eyes widened and she turned to Bobby.

"No! It's not like that!" She lowered her eyes to the ground before looking up to him again. "When he first asked me out, I refused his offer...but he wouldn't take no for an answer...so I made a deal with him..." Helga's head lowered again, unable to finish. Luckily, Harold finished it for her.

"She agreed to be my girlfriend when third quarter begins." Bobby's eyes widened, and then narrowed in anger. She glared at Harold.

"That's only if Arnold doesn't come back! But I know he will!" She yelled, stomping her foot down. She shook Bobby's arm quickly, noticing his anger.

"Please, Bobby, understand me! It was the only way...other wise..." But Bobby looked at her with a smile.

"I'm not mad at you, Helga. It's not your fault you're beautiful." In this situation, Helga shouldn't have acted the way she was acting now. She shouldn't have been speechless, she shouldn't have been shaking, and she definitely shouldn't have been blushing. But she let go of his arm to cover her red cheeks. Harold growled, but quickly stopped when Bobby glared at him. "But Harold, on the other hand, is at all faults. Dude, you know what you're doing is called harassment, right?" Bobby asked, snickering coldly at the boy. Though Helga and Harold probably didn't notice, Bobby was ticked. How dare Harold torment Helga! How dare him! There was no exception! As Bobby glared harshly, Harold turned red in embarrassment, but then stomped up quickly. Harold stuttered as he reached around Bobby, and grabbed Helga's arm. Helga stopped blushing quickly, and glared at Harold as she clawed at his hand. She gasped, noticing how he was using all his strength. When they were younger, she knew he would never really use his real strength on her, but now she stared in to his eyes to see the Harold she knew no where. It was as if he had been possessed by a demon.

"Let go of me, Harold!" She screamed, struggling to get out of his grip. Bobby turned around quickly, and punched Harold with all of his might. Harold in response let go of Helga, but then punched Bobby.

"Don't touch me, little punk!" Harold yelled. Helga covered her mouth as a small gasp left her mouth.

"S-stop it you two! You'll get in trouble if someone comes!" But the two continued to punch each other. Bobby knocked Harold down and began to punch his face repeatedly. Harold's bloody face began to puff more with each punch, but he only continued to fight back, and Bobby wasn't able to hold him down for long. Harold was stronger and buffer than Bobby, who was toned but thin. Finally gathering strength, Harold pulled Bobby under him and punched his face just as hard. He reached in to his pocket when Bobby began to weaken, and pulled out a pocket knife.

"I told you not to touch me, punk! Now you're gonna pay!" He yelled as he flick the knife open. Bobby's eyes widened as he watched the silver blade shine from the setting sun and Helga frowned in a silent panic; this was going too far!

"Stop it, Harold! I said stop it!" She yelled, pushing Harold off of Bobby. The blade slashed her arm as Harold fell to the ground, but she ignored the slash as she bent down to Bobby.

"Are you alright?" Helga asked as she quickly helped him stand. Bobby looked at her cut in silence, his eyes filled with rage. Harold had gone too far. Harold wiped his bloody lip as he sat up.

"You're making a mistake, Helga!" Harold yelled to Helga as she let Bobby lean on her. "You don't want to get on my bad side..." Helga glared at Harold.

"What has happened to you Harold?" Helga asked. "You've become so barbaric...you would have never do anything like this when we were younger!" She exclaimed. Harold stood up before lifting his head to snicker at Helga.

"Wake up, Helga. We aren't kids anymore. Maybe you should think about that, too." The three were silent for a moment before Helga walked up to Harold. Bobby tried to stop her, but she only held her hand up. Harold lifted an eyebrow as she stopped in front of him; Helga's face was expressionless. Her mouth was a thin line as her eyes stared deep into his. He found himself shrinking under her apathetic stare; why wouldn't she just say something? As if sensing his angst, Helga acted. Raising her hand and pulling it back, she threw it on to his face as hard as she could. He staggered back, gasping for a moment, before glaring at her. As he began to speak, she cut him off quickly.

"Did our friendship mean nothing to you?" She yelled at him. "You just cut your friend on the arm, and didn't even notice!" Harold walked up closer her, but Bobby walked behind her just as quickly. He rested his hands on Helga's shoulders protectively as Harold stopped. Helga looked up at the taller Bobby. "Bobby?" She asked, confused. Bobby only stared at Harold with his enraged eyes.

"You just don't get it, do you?" Bobby asked with a scowl. "All Helga wanted was to be your friend...yet you've done just about everything to make it worse. Do you _want_ Helga to hate you?" Both Helga and Harold stared at Bobby now. His eyes seemed to flash red as he spoke coldly. Finally, though, Harold turned around, and walked away in silence. Helga stretched her arm out to him, but Bobby stopped her. "Let him have some time alone, Helga. He needs to think about what he's done." He looked down at Helga, his face still swollen from the fight. "How is your arm? It wasn't too deep a cut, was it?" Helga sighed, looking at his face.

"What are you thinking? You're the one that really got hurt!" Pulling a hanker chief out of her pocket, she dabbed his bleeding nose. Bobby stared at her as he noticed her eyes water lightly.

"...You're crying." She blinked before turning away and wiping her eyes.

"I-I'm not crying...I just got something in my eye." Bobby turned her around, and lifted her chin so that she looked at him. "...Bobby...I know my dad is going to be mad, and I can't call Phoebe to talk to her about this, and...I don't want to go home..." Although Harold had been tormenting Helga's heart, Bobby realized that his friendship with Helga was important to her. The fights she had had today were really hurtful to her, and he was sure that it worried her that they wouldn't make up.

"You can stay at the boarding house again." He looked at her troubled face, "Don't worry, Helga. I'm sure things will get better." He pulled her into a tight hug, and she grabbed the back of his shirt tightly as tears leaked from here eyes. She wasn't sure how long they stayed like that, but it was dark by the time they finished their hug. When they parted from the hug, Bobby chuckled. "Well I didn't expect to spend my afternoon like this..." The two laughed before getting in to his car. As Bobby started the car, Helga raised a questioning eyebrow.

"Um, Bobby, will you be able to see with your eyes so puffy?" Bobby looked at Helga with a raised eyebrow.

"Uh, Helga, are you stupid?" Helga puffed her cheeks stubbornly, but only laughed in the end. As they stopped laughing, Bobby stared at Helga for a moment with a smile. She blinked. "What is it?" Noticing that he was staring, he quickly pulled his eyes on to the street and drove to the boarding house.

* * *

Helga lay on the couch of Bobby's room, fast asleep in one of his oversized jerseys and pants. Bobby sat on the floor, leaning against his bed in silence as he gazed at the girl. Her blonde hair, which had been captured in a ponytail earlier, now flowed over her tanned face. His hand reached out to a strand of the silk hair, and pushed it behind her ear. Sighing, he lowered his hand again. Helga. What a trouble maker. She was quite the handful, wasn't she? Bobby sighed again, and looked down at his lap.

He loved her so much.

She had no idea on how hard it was for him to say that he didn't love her. Why, he wondered, had she chosen him to cry in front of? Why not Jerald, or some other friend? It was hard to keep himself from kissing her when she opened up to him, but it was even harder now, as she slept peacefully like the goddess she was. Standing up, he took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down; he got too excited just then. Rubbing his forehead, he looked at Helga once more. Maybe if he said it out loud he would feel better. Turning to Helga, he bent down towards her face.

"Helga...I love you..." He said in a whisper. Helga shuffled under her blanket, and Bobby threw himself back with a red face. But she only stretched before turning on to her side again. Bobby took a deep breath before sighing to himself, and walking to the side of his bed. Note to self, never do that again. But Helga heard him in her sleep, and she mumbled at first, and then said it clearly:

"I love you too...Arnold..." Bobby stopped walking, and turned to look at the girl. She smiled in her sleep, and hugged her pillow tightly. "I love you like Juliet loves her Romeo..." Bobby chuckled to himself before walking over to her one last time, and petting her head lightly.

"Don't worry, Helga. I'm sure your Romeo isn't dead." He paused for a moment, but then bent down to kiss her forehead. As his lips tapped her forehead, Helga took his hand in hers tightly, refusing to let go.

"Y...you stupid football head...you left without saying goodbye..." Bobby sighed at her; was he really having this conversation with a sleeping Helga? Stroking her hair, he calmed her down, and she let go of his hand before turning herself around on the couch. Bobby put some space between the two of them, and let out one final sigh. He stared at his love with pained eyes as he saw her breath return to normal again. Helga smiled in her sleep, and hugged the pillow even tighter.

"I know you're not dead...Bobby..." Bobby turned to her one more time, hearing her mumble _something_, but came to the conclusion that it was just the wind, and then shrugged. As Bobby climbed in to his bed, Helga fell in to a speechless slumber once again.


	5. The Carnival

Hi everybody! I hope you have been enjoying my story so far!

Also, thank you if you reviewed! So many good points have been made! I will definitely pay more attention to those little details and such! And I would like to apologize about the last chapter…everyone seemed to notice my fan girl phase…I went a little crazy with the events, ha ha. But everything will straighten out, I promise (at least I hope…)! Also, in this chapter I'm going to try to get more of the characters in (like Stinky, Rhonda and such…). Well, enjoy the story!

PS, please review this chapter! I worked very hard on it, so I want A LOT of input please! Any changes I should make? You liked something? Tell me! Thanks a lot,

--KitaxHaku

* * *

"It's Saturday!" Helga cried happily, jumping on to Bobby who was sleeping on his bed. He cracked an eye open to look at the person who dared wake him up, and then blushed as the light shone around her from the sky window.

"Y-you know…if you wake me up every time you sleep over, we'll have some problems..." He said as he sat up with a tired sigh as Helga sat back on to her knees and tilted her head with a smile, ignoring his complaining.

"I thought we could hang out today, since it is so lovely outside!" Helga said with a bright face. Bobby stared at her, regaining his face's apathetic mask, and lay back in bed, pulling the cover over his face.

"Go away." He grunted. Helga, who now wore a strained smile on her face, threw Bobby out of the bed and stood up on the bed as he sat up grumpily.

"Listen, you swine, I'm trying to be nice!" She yelled, holding up a pair of random tickets, "I got up at seven o'clock this morning to get these tickets for that new amusement park, and the thanks I get are 'go away?' " Bobby, now awake, stood up while scratching his abs.

"Amusement park?" He repeated, taking a ticket to look at. The amusement park was the new one that had opened a couple of blocks from the boarding house, he noticed. Bobby blinked at Helga, a little confused. "Why would you want to go? Aren't you tired?" Helga paused for a moment, but then slapped Bobby's head harshly. "Ow! What was that for?!" He yelled at her.

"Let's just go!" Bobby blinked as Helga finished yelling before jumping off the bed. She, turning a gentle pink, looked away as her arms crossed. "It's…" She whispered, "the least I could do for you…" Bobby raised an eyebrow with a grin before nodding his head.

"I get it, I get it." He said, "Fine. Let's go." Helga watched Bobby walk into the bathroom and close the door behind him with a smile. She smiled to herself as well, and picked up her phone quickly.

"Phoebe? I need to borrow a dress. Anything will do."

* * *

Bobby's heart was pounding as he stepped into the bathroom. He had tried to act cool in front of Helga when she was blushing…but once he got into the bathroom he nearly died of a heart attack. How did she not realize how cute she was? Bobby's heart beat slowed down as he heard Helga on the phone.

"Phoebe? I need to borrow a dress. Anything will do…Why? Because, I'm going to the amusement park with Bobby. I want to look nice…Well, would you rather me go in _his_ clothes?" There was a pause, a sigh, and then more, "I know he's not Arnold, Phoebe…it's just that he saved me from Harold last night, and I owe him…" Bobby stopped listening after that, unable to take the pain. What could he do to stop hurting her? If only there was some way to give her the satisfaction…

Bobby's brain produced the simplest solution there was; he hit himself on the head for not thinking of it before…

* * *

"Yeah…okay…I'll see you there. Thanks, man. She will definitely feel better after seeing you." Bobby said through his cell phone. Hanging up, he sighed to himself. Grandpa, who stood in the hallway, looked at the teenager.

"Are you sure this is alright, Sprout?" Bobby looked at the elderly man and nodded, smiling a sad smile.

"It's…for the best…she's been getting hurt because of me, and I don't want to hurt her anymore…" Bobby said before he walked out of the boarding house. Grandpa looked after him with a worried expression; how many secrets did this boy hold? Bobby stood at the top of the stairs, looking up to the sky. Where did she go, anyway? She left a note, saying that she'd be back at eight, but alas she was nowhere to be found.

"Bobby!" Helga called from behind. Bobby looked down from the sky and turned to see the hyper girl running towards him in a light pink dress that flared down at her calves. He turned red, and pointed to her as she halted to a stop while blinking like an innocent little girl in her innocent little dress.

"W…What are you wearing?" He asked, stuttering as he still pointed with his hand. She blinked, looking at her dress.

"Do you not like it?" She asked, tilting her head, allowing Bobby to notice her curled bangs as well.

"It's not that I don't like it…it's just…it's just…" He said, still red in the face. Helga rolled her eyes and walked towards his car.

"Look, let's just go, alright? We have to meet up with a couple of people!" Bobby blinked. People? What people?

* * *

"Helga! Bobby!" Rhonda screamed in joy, running up to the couple. Helga waved happily as Bobby dragged his feet behind her.

"Yo!" Helga replied before narrowing her eyes at the boy grumbling behind her. "Hey, Bobby! Be a little happy that you're here, will you?" Bobby only mumbled a growl in response before Rhonda returned Helga's attention to herself.

"Helga darling, tell me what you think of my dress!" Rhonda said with a smile, pulling the trim of her knee length sun dress. "It is imported from Paris!" Helga sighed, nodding to please the fashion queen.

"Yeah, it's great, Rhonda. It looks wonderful." The red and black pattern on the dress with fish net stockings only kept Rhonda's personality in check all the more so. Rhonda was pleased, though, and thus backed up to her boyfriend's arms. Helga felt shivers run down her spin as she saw Rhonda's boyfriend. How strange was it to see Stinky and Rhonda together? They were complete opposites; a country boy and a princess! Stinky smiled, taking his hand out of his basketball team's famous jacket, and shook hands with Bobby.

"It's real nice to see ya'll again, Bobby, Helga!" Helga smiled as Stinky retreated his hand after the hand shake, and returned it quickly to Rhonda's waist. Perhaps that was why they went out; Rhonda required a man with manners, and though Stinky was a country boy, he had plenty. Besides, Helga recalled, Stinky was the basketball captain; there was no way Rhonda'd let him slip out of her popular fingers!

"Stinky, Rhonda! Helga, Bobby! Hey!" The four teenagers turned, recognizing the voices of Penelope and Sid, who were running towards them hand in hand. Wasn't it funny on how everyone from their childhoods were getting together?

"Penelope, Sid! Hey! How are you doing?" Helga asked, giving a quick hug to Penelope and then a high five to Sid. Penelope was still small, but her once wild braids were now pulled back into a loose pony-tail and she now sported a tight purple t-shirt and baggy pants (she also sported a lovely bug clip in her hair). Sid, who only grew taller, was still the same as always with his hat turned backwards and his pants' ends tucked into cowboy boots.

"We're sorry we're late!" Sid explained, "We had to take the subway, cause we heard the traffic was bad." As Helga thought about how her friends had grown, the rest of the group was deciding on what to do first. "We should go on that new roller coaster!" Sid suggested, raising his hand up in excitement. Penelope shook her head quickly.

"I get sick on those rides, Sid!" She said, complaining loudly. "I don't want to go on a roller coaster yet! We just came back from lunch!" Sid lowered his hand and nodded, letting Penelope have her peace. Stinky lowered his head down to Rhonda's, asking her what she wanted to do.

"I want to go to the tunnel of love!" She exclaimed, hugging her boyfriend around the neck. "Thank you for asking, darling!" As they nuzzled happily, Helga sighed before turning to Bobby. She felt blush creeping up her cheeks; did they really expect them to go in as a couple? Helga snorted, she didn't think so! Anything would be better…anything!

"What do you want to do, Bobby?" She asked, tilting her head to catch his attention. Bobby snapped his head up from the ground; he had been zoning out completely. Helga blinked, "Are you okay?" He nodded quickly before grinning.

"I-I was just thinking the same thing as Sid…that's all." Helga shrugged before walking around Rhonda and Stinky.

"W-well, why don't we go ride the roller coaster as these four go in the tunnel of love?" Helga suggested. Bobby nodded, walking behind her.

"That sounds good. Let's go." He said before Rhonda waved at them.

"Wait! We're still waiting for the rest of the group!" She complained, "We have one more couple coming!" Helga blinked; who could it be? Phoebe and Gerald both said they couldn't come…so who?

"Ah, there they are!" Rhonda screamed in delight. "Aren't they just the cutest couple? This is their first date!" Helga looked over in confusion to the large attraction of Rhonda's gossip, and soon regretted it. Lila and Harold? No way! But there they were, walking up hand in hand.

"Hey you guys!" Lila said happily as Helga, Bobby and Harold created a rather hostile tone for the group. Helga, already noticing Bobby's tense fists, took his hand quickly to calm him down. The two shared a look before turning their gaze towards the roller coaster in the other direction.

"Have fun!" The two of them said at the same time, already walking away. Rhonda sighed, asking them why they were leaving so quickly, but Lila only giggled.

"Oh, that's right! Helga, I wanted to talk to you real quick!" She said in her sweet voice. Helga stopped, and turned her head to glare at her before she noticed Lila's expression. At first, Helga glared at Lila's unreadable expression; the last time she had seen it was when she was going to do something horrible, but then, her unreadable expression suddenly changed to an utterly serious one. Helga blinked, confused; what was going on with this strange girl? She suddenly appeared with Harold, and now she was playing 'face charades?' Lila walked up to Helga, pulling her away from Bobby. "I really…_**really**_ wanted to talk to you, Helga." She whispered so that only she could hear, "Let's go play over in the house of mirrors for a little, Helga! We can get lost together!" Before Helga even replied, she was pulled away from the group and Bobby, and was pulled into the house of mirrors. Bobby stretched out his arm after her, but Rhonda quickly pulled him back.

"While they're having their little talk, why don't we have a boy contest? Whoever buys me the most presents wins!" She screamed in excitement. As everyone agreed to the time passing game, Bobby looked after Helga in concern. What was going on? It was all way too fast. "Eh? Where did Harold go?" Rhonda asked, looking around. Sid blinked, shrugging.

"He said he had to go to the bathroom, and that he'd catch up." Penelope said as Sid switched a look with her. "But did you notice? After they let go of each other's hands, Harold's face got kinda scary…" Bobby's eyes narrowed in concern…what was going to happen? He made a gesture of leaving the group, but Rhonda quickly pulled him back.

"Oh no you don't! You're going to help them buy me presents! The more the merrier!" Rhonda proclaimed, pulling him away as he struggled to get away. Soon he gave up; Rhonda was impossible to escape…

* * *

"…So…" Helga said, scratching her head in confusion, "What do you want, Lila?" Lila turned to her with a blink, as if she herself had forgotten.

"Oh yeah…I wonder what it was? I forgot!" Lila said with a giggle, causing Helga to quickly turn away, looking for the right way out. They were a long way in the house of mirrors now, and Helga wasn't so good with these things.

"Ah, is that so? Then I guess I'll be leaving then. Thanks for wasting my time." Helga snorted, already irritated that she was forced to walk around so much, and now couldn't get out.

"Well, I may not remember, but…" Lila paused, and Helga turned around to face the silent girl in confusion, "Harold may!" She chimed happily as Harold stepped from behind a mirror, staring straight at Helga. She jumped in alarm, and glared at Lila.

"You…you set me up?!" She yelled. Lila blinked, tilting her head.

"Set up? Oh no, no, no!" Lila said, shaking her finger quickly, "Harold just wanted to talk to you alone, that's all! So I helped him out a bit!" Lila's smile grew larger, and now looked like a mask on her face. "And to make sure that you get your privacy, I made sure that no one would come in! The ticket man promised me last night!" She said with a giggle before glaring at Helga. "So Bobby won't come, either." With another laugh of sheer evil, Lila turned away from Helga, and disappeared behind the mirrors. As she lunged after her, Harold quickly caught her. She quickly began to struggle out of his grip, and hit his face as hard as she could before running the opposite way. Harold, still silent, quickly chased after her. Helga felt the mirrors quickly; it was hard to tell what was what; the room was pitch black. As she searched for the next hall of mirrors, Harold caught her arm, and slammed her onto the mirror closest to them. Helga cringed, and looked up at him. His eyes were cold, and they stared at her with a certain yearning. She screamed, telling him to let go, but he only whispered quietly:

"You are mine." Helga gasped at him, shaking her head before regaining her fighting spirit. "I won't let anybody else have you." His lips trailed down her cheek as she struggled to get away from him. What was wrong with Harold? When had all of this happened to her old friend? She turned to his face and bit his lip, causing him to real back his head for a moment.

"How did you end up like this, Harold? Are you really going to do this to me?" She asked, her voice cracking as she attempted to struggle once more. Harold's eyes were cold and emotionless; he did not answer her. He only leaned in, lightly rubbing his lips on her neck. Helga snapped her eyes open, and began to struggle more and more, the fear she had once swallowed rising up in her throat. "S-stop it!" She cried, her voice cracking uncontrollably now. Her legs shook quickly, and soon the only thing holding her up was Harold's harsh grip on her wrists. She tried to force her legs to stand up; she tried to regain her tough act that she had so long practiced; but in the end, she couldn't help but feel a tear roll down her cheek. She was a girl…and even though she kick-boxed in her spare time, she realized that she was still no match for Harold's strength. As Harold's kisses on her neck and shoulder became heavier, Helga's eyes dulled for a moment; it was as if all hope was lost, and that in this house of mirrors she was going to be trapped forever.

But fate stepped in, and Arnold's smiling face broke through her mind. Her eyes became alert once more, and her struggles resumed, only this time three times stronger.

"Did you hear me? Get off of me, Harold!" She screamed as she twisted her wrists in his grip as hard as she could, and pulled her neck away from his lips. Harold snapped his head up, noticing her increasing restraint, and let go of one of her wrists to cover her mouth. But Helga took this chance by slamming her knee into his groin. Harold grunted, taking his free hand and covering his sore pride, but still holding onto Helga's right wrist. She struggled as fast as she could, trying to escape before he regained his stature, but it was too late. Harold stood up in an awkward stance before pulling Helga close to him. His grip was tight on her wrist and now on her waist. She struggled as much as she could, but Harold growled as they made eye contact.

"No one will come for you!" He yelled in her face. "Bobby isn't coming, and Arnold is dead!" Helga's eyes widened as he yelled. "None of this would have happened anyway if you would just have gone out with me in the first place!" He continued, now taking her face in his hand so that he could pull her chin towards his face. "I am the only one for you, why won't you believe me?" He asked in a whisper, bringing her face close to his. A frustrated tear fell before she closed her eyes. She curled her head down to her chest, shaking, before screaming at him.

"I will never go out with you! And I don't believe you!"She screamed at Harold. "I will never believe that Arnold is dead!" She yelled, struggling against his grip once again. "Arnold!" She screamed, "_**Arnold!**_" The glass mirrors behind her shattered, and both of them looked up in a startled fashion. What had broken the glass? What body had crashed through Helga's flying nightmare? What was it?

The question wasn't what, but who.

The shattered glass seemed to slow down around the man's body as he stood up, the sound of glass breaking under his feet. His knuckles were bleeding badly, and one could see his knuckles' bones. The blonde haired boy turned his lowered head towards the two, and Harold's grip loosened on Helga. She snapped out of her daze as she quickly escaped Harold's hold. As she ran close to him, her eyes widened. It wasn't Bobby who stood in front of her…it was Arnold! His head was still football shaped, though he had grown taller and toned his muscles. The thing that really gave it away was his small blue hat that sat on his head, perched in the middle of his blonde hair.

"Arnold!" She cried, flying into his arms, holding him tightly. Tears rolled down her face uncontrollably now as she dug her face into his stomach. "Arnold!" She cried once more before sniffs stifled her voice from talking any further. His hand petted her soft hair as she tightened her grip.

"It's alright, Helga…I'm here." He whispered before looking up at Harold, who jumped. "…Just what do you think you were doing, Harold?" Arnold asked, his voice much deeper than Harold's and Gerald's combined. Harold stepped back at the unexpected change, but attempted to answer none the less.

"W-who do you think you are? This is none of your business, weirdo!" Harold yelled, "I don't even know you—" Arnold snorted, sending a death glare.

"You know just who I am, Harold. And if you know what's good for you, you'll remember to stay clear of me and leave Helga alone." As Harold opened his mouth to protest more, there were shouts of policemen and Bobby closing in. Harold cursed under his breath, shook his fist at Arnold, and sprinted away towards the exit.

It took a moment for Helga to catch her breath. She wasn't even sure if she'd be able to let go of Arnold. She took a deep breath, though, and lifted her head up to meet with his eyes. But Arnold quickly covered her eyes with his large hand. "Don't look at me, Helga…at least, not yet…" Helga took his hand in hers and gripped it harshly.

"W…why, Arnold? I've been waiting all this time…yet—"

"I know, I know. I'm just not ready to see your eyes yet…I have to leave soon, and if I look into your eyes, I won't be able to..." He said coolly but painfully. Helga shook her head quickly.

"No! You can't leave!" She said as she jumped on to him with a hug again, "I won't lose you again, Arnold! Not now!" But he pried her off of him, and kissed her forehead lightly.

"I will be back by the end of this year. I promise. I will still be in the area, Helga, but I can't risk letting everyone know I'm here. I've been working with a special group since I left, and we can't be found." Helga was silent at this remark, "But on July 9th, I'll be able to come back and see your eyes." He said before stroking Helga's tear marked cheek, "…Helga…I have always wanted you to know…I'm sorry that I was unable to realize your feelings…" Helga felt his hand leave her cheek lightly, and when she looked up, he was gone. The police officers filed in one after another as Helga turned around and around, searching for Arnold.

"Ma'am, are you alright? There were many reports of screaming in here." The assumed chief stated. Helga took one last glance around the mirror trap before looking up to the chief.

"Yes…I am fine…a man robbed me, but he left as soon as he got my money." Helga lied. Bobby ran up to Helga quickly.

"Helga!" He yelled, grabbing her into a hug, "Are you alright? I heard you screaming but I couldn't get in; the door was locked!" Helga smiled, a final tear falling.

"Bobby…he came for me…" She whispered happily, resting her chin on his shoulder. "Arnold showed up…" Bobby's grip on Helga was loose, but when she said this, his grip tightened more and more. "Bobby?" Helga asked in confusion. He quickly let her go, turning around.

"S-sorry…I was just so worried about you…" He lied. "Come on, I'll take you home…" Helga tilted her head in worry; she knew he was lying…but why was he lying? What was he covering? But she let it go; she had enough on her mind.

* * *

Bobby sighed as he parked his car in front of the boarding house. After shutting the door as hard as possible, Grandma popped her head out from the kitchen.

"He's in here, Bobby." She said seriously before walking back over to the table. Bobby flicked a blonde strand of hair out of his face as he faced his cousin.

He sat slouched now as he wiped off spray-on tanning from his naturally pale face. His matching blonde hair and blue eyes shone like Bobby's; the only difference was that his head was still football shaped.

"Hey, Arnie."

"Hey cuz." Arnie said, his voice now back to its congested sound. "How did you think my acting was? Not too shabby, right? I have been practicing to become a famous actor…" His voice trailed off as he noticed a button sitting on the table. "Hey…can I have that? I still am collecting buttons…after all…" Bobby smiled lightly, pushing the button his way.

"It's the least I could do, trust me. I'll send you the rare ones I found in South America next week." Arnie lowered the button from his eyes, raising an eyebrow.

"About this whole situation, cuz…" He said, "Why are you hiding your true identity from them? Especially Helga, who you know really likes you." Bobby sighed, rubbing his forehead. "Even if your head got smaller, you are still the same boy inside…" Arnie paused, "…Arnold…"

Bobby's eyes raised from the table to meet his cousin's gaze steadily. The grandparents and Arnie all stared at their seemingly long lost relative, waiting for an answer. Arnold sighed, looking back up.

"Because…I don't want to hurt her…or any of them…" Arnold confronted. "I know that I'm being really selfish by not allowing them to know, but…if they were to find out that I came back, only to leave after a year again, what would they think of me then?" There was a long pause among the group before Arnie sighed, leaving the table.

"I'm going to go to sleep, then. I'll leave early tomorrow, okay? Good night." The three others nodded good nights before standing up and following suit. Arnold stopped as he looked out the window of the living room, and walked across the room to stare at the stars. Arnie's words repeated in his head, and he sighed again.

"I have to keep on lying…if she knew that I was here by her side all this time…she'd be worse off than before…" He covered his eyes, "Besides…" He kneeled down on the floor quietly, "I don't want her to stop loving me…"


	6. Romeo, oh Romeo!

The day was bright and sunny, and the clouds moved steadily east. The children played in the street with water hydrants flaring water everywhere, spraying each other happily with buckets of water. Indeed, nothing could be more soothing than the peace on this day.

Even so, Bobby was grumpy. Why, you ask, was he so grumpy?

He'd like you to tell him the answer when you find out, too; he couldn't figure it out.

"Bobby!" Helga chirped, running towards him, her arm raised to block water from completely soaking her already damp clothes. "Hey, Bobby! What's up?" Bobby looked up with a sigh as the childishly happy girl slowed to a stop in front of him. "Why are you sighing? Come play with me!"

"Are you a nine year old?" He questioned as he stood up and walked towards the door of the boarding house. "I can't believe she woke me up for this…" Bobby felt a tug on his hair, and he growled as he turned, his hands on the back of his head, "Hey! Watch it, punk!" He screamed. Helga's smile had long fallen, and her hands were on her hips. She raised an eyebrow, waiting to see if he'd dare to say anything else to her.

"Well excuse me for wanting to have some fun!" She snapped, "What got your briefs into a knot?" Bobby spit at her before pulling his boxers up from his under his pants and sassing back,

"I wear boxers, not briefs!" Helga turned red, and began to thrash at him as he ran into the boarding house for safety. She yelled at him as he ran up the stairs, making threats that made him giggle.

'Ah, how wonderful,' he thought sarcastically; though it was true that the only thing that could make him get out of these little depressions was the yelling of an angry Helga. He pulled the stairs up before Helga could reach them, and she growled from downstairs as he grinned at her. "Hey, I was just correcting you! No need to get so angry!" He said from above. She crossed her arms and looked at him with a sigh.

"What am I going to do with you?" She asked, shaking her head. "Every time I come up to you with a smile, you get angry. Whenever I'm angry, you're happy!" Bobby put his finger on his lips, tapping them in a moment of thought. He grinned down at her, responding, "I guess that's true!" Helga's eyebrow twitched as she looked at the boy. Really, this was how it always was. Even when they had first met, he was happy when she was angry! Did he secretly get a pleasure out of it? She looked up at him again with a sigh, only to see him making a strange yet pleased face at her.

No, he didn't get a pleasure out of it secretly…he just plain enjoyed it.

Helga sighed again, rubbing her forehead, and tapped her foot on the ground. "So?" Bobby, who had turned on his back, moved his head to show he was listening, "Are you going to come down, Juliet, or am I going to have to kill myself?" Bobby grinned to himself, feeling happy with her annoyance, and turned onto his stomach to respond, "No, a kiss on the lips will suffice. No need to kill yourself." Helga quickly made an X with her arms, and turned around; her face red. Why was she blushing? She shouldn't have been blushing!

"I-idiot!" She stuttered, trying to collect herself, "I'll only kiss the man I love!" As Bobby became silent again, Helga did not turn around, but only began walking away. "I'll be outside if you need me—" There was a thump behind her, and she turned around to see Bobby crouching down on the ground. She turned, raising an eyebrow. He stood up, looking at her with a dangerous flirt mustering in his eyes.

"Only Arnold, huh?" He asked, walking up close. Helga's eyes fluttered, and then looked away in silence, though she nodded. "Well then…." Helga backed up as he approached her, and she was quickly against the wall, his hands on either side of her head, "There should be no problem." Helga's eyes widened as he said this, and she blinked a couple of moments before shaking her head and looking up at him again. His face was dead serious; there was no twinkle in his eye anymore; the flirtatious muster had long disappeared.

But it didn't add up; she thought, when Arnold had rescued her at the carnival last week, he had the same old football head, and his voice was deeper. Though their eyes and height were the same, there was no way Bobby could have 'played' the rest of the details. Besides, their hugs felt different. Bobby's was tight and protective while Arnold's was loose and…and…

Helga was deep in thought now, trying to determine what kind of hug Arnold had given her. How was it that she was able to describe Bobby's so quickly and accurately, but not Arnold's? It disturbed her, to say in the least. She didn't love Bobby, she loved Arnold—

Helga's eyes raised up to Bobby's, and she caught a look of pure pain on his face. All of her unsure thoughts vanished, and were replaced by a friendly worry. Bobby's lips were still curved in his small grin, but his eyes seemed to almost shake, and his eyebrows burrowed lowly. Why was he making such a face?

"W…What did you mean?" Helga asked quietly as Bobby snapped out of his daze. He quickly let go of the walls, and turned away from Helga's confused face, "Bobby, what did you mean when you said that there should be no problem?" At first, there was only silence, and Bobby shuffled himself around the hallway for a couple of seconds. But as Helga called his name out again, he turned to her with a happy face and a peace sign.

"What are you making such a big deal for? I was just playing around!" He said, "You called me Arnold before; don't you remember? I was just seeing what reaction you'd give me now!" He laughed, and walked into the kitchen, still talking to her, "How stupid would that be, anyway? To be with the one I love, and not tell her I'm here? Ha! That would be really stupid!"

Helga walked into the doorway, but rested there in the middle, staring at Bobby quietly. He had silently begun washing the dishes; it was obvious that something was on his mind, and he didn't want it there.

As his words repeated in her head, she realized something, and her eyebrows burrowed. "Bobby…how did you know whether Arnold loved me or not?"

A glass dropped onto the ground as Bobby froze. Helga's eyes widened as she stared at him, shocked that she had caught him in a lie. "Oh…oh God…don't tell me…" Bobby, who was now gripping the sink's edges until his knuckles turned white, lowered his head as Helga walked up closer. "Bobby…don't tell me…" She said, her voice rising. Bobby turned his head away, and then eventually his whole body moved away from her as he fumbled with miscellaneous things around the kitchen, "Y-you're joking again, right?" She asked, now screaming, "Bobby, look at me!"

And Bobby turned, looking at Helga with a pained and fearful expression. What had he done?

"Helga…I…" Helga screamed, and she fell to the ground with wide eyes. Her legs went numb; even her lips were numb.

Everything was numb as she looked at Bobby.

* * *

**Ah, the lovely cliff hanger. Sorry it was shorter than the others.**

**What did you think? I think it was fun to write, he he he.**

**Anyway, I have a request of my darling readers. Could four of you review this chapter? I want a number divisible by 10! (aka, forty please!) That's all that I ask; I won't update till I get 40!**

**Anyway, see you next chapter!**

**KitaxHaku**


	7. Juliet, oh Juliet!

Woo! Thank you for reviewing so quickly! Let's add five more, or even TEN (though they are optional, I'd appreciate it)! I mean, really, come on! I JUST sent in a chapter, and I'm already giving you another one! PLEASE?!

I have a feeling I'm going to be killed after you read this chapter…PLEASE don't hurt me…I love you! Lol, but yeah, anyway, TRY to enjoy the chapter…I updated (give me SOME credit)…?

Oh, and yes, I meant for it to be this short. This is going to be a 'bridge' chapter for the next.

* * *

Bobby had never been so frustrated in his life.

He thought he was gonna have a heart attack, you know?

He thought Helga had figured him out!

He thought she had found out his real identity; he thought she was going to burst into tears, and run to him, calling him Arnold!

But instead, she smiled at him, and began to giggle!

That's right, you heard him. Helga had fallen to the ground, looking up at him like she was going to cry; she'd noticed his one mess up, and what does she say? Well, you should have heard it from herself:

"_**Bobby…" Helga stared up at him as he looked away, his hand gripping his other arm as he nervously looked down at Helga, "Bobby…you…you knew, didn't you?" Bobby stared at her for a moment longer before lowering his head and nodding in silence.**_

"_**But…I was only doing it for your own good—" He was cut off by a giggling girl who jumped on him with a big hug.**_

"_**Oh Bobby!" She said with a smile, "I can't believe it! You and Arnold were secretly talking this whole time!" Bobby's eyes widened in surprise as she let go of his neck and twirled around, "That does make sense, doesn't it? He used to live in your room, so there's no surprise that you guys know each other!" Bobby raised his hand as her imagination spun out of control,**_

"_**W-wait, Helga…"**_

"_**Oh! That's right! You came from South America, didn't you?! That must be where Arnold was! You became good friends, didn't you?" She said, smiling happily. "Oh Bobby, thank you so much for helping him! That must have been why you were always so mean to me, so that he could recognize my evil ways from elementary school!"**_

_**Helga was having way too much fun making up this story…**_

"_**H-Helga…"**_

"_**And you even kept a watch over me while you were here—"**_

"_**Helga…"**_

"_**Oh Bobby, thank you so much! I'm sure Arnold says the same thing to you—"**_

"_**Helga!" Helga stopped hopping around, and turned, her eyes fluttering in surprise by Bobby's raised voice. She turned to him, standing up straight, and looked at him. "H-Helga…y-you've got it all wrong." She answered him with pained eyes. It was then that he realized she knew exactly what he was thinking.**_

"…_**Am I wrong, Bobby?"**_

Bobby sighed again, thinking about this conversation with a large migraine. He had never been so ashamed of him and his plan until now. Look at where it got him; no where! And it even got Helga making up her own stories, just to save herself from the pain. She had left him feeling like the biggest jerk in the world…which he was convinced that he really was the biggest jerk in the world.

_Wasn't that why I had Arnie come over here in the first place? _Bobby scolded himself mentally, _To save her from the pain?_ _We worked so hard to convince her that Bobby and Arnold were in two different worlds, and now it means nothing! Stupid, Bobby! Stupid stupid stupid!_

But then again, Bobby recalled, he had delivered the final blow. He had agreed with her theory, and allowed Helga to believe that they were indeed two people…when they were still only one. HE was the one who kept hurting her.

He rubbed his head again, sighing. What was he to do?

A body filled up the space on the chair beside him, and he looked up with a startled jump.

"How's it going, Sprout?" After seeing it was Grandpa, he gave a weary smile before returning to rubbing his face with his hands in aggravation.

"Not too good, Grandpa, not too good…" Bobby responded quietly. Grandpa sighed quietly as he laid back in his chair, thinking of what to say.

"I heard the whole conversation from the living room." He said, "It seems like it would have been pretty hard to convince her otherwise, even if you had tried." Bobby sighed again, and lowered his head onto his arm, resting himself on the table.

"But Grandpa…" He said, almost in a whisper, "I've done nothing but lie to her while I've been here…I've told everyone else about me, except her." He lowered his head so that his forehead could feel the cold wood of the table, "Gerald, Phoebe, Sid, Penelope, Rhonda…everyone except for her—and Harold and Lila—which doesn't help much." Grandpa smiled lightly at his grandson, and patted his back.

"Well, that's because you're scared." He said with another chuckle, "It's natural to not want to let her know…she's the most important one to you, right?" Bobby didn't lift up his head, though his ears turned red in silence, and he nodded, "Everyone else that you told is important to you…but sometimes, for the most important person in your life, you just…don't want to let go." Bobby stayed silent for another moment, and Grandpa sighed a little before standing up. "I'm going to go help your grandma with the garden, Sprout. Feel better." After giving one more look to his grandson, he continued to walk out before Bobby called out to him, though his head was still on the table,

"Hey Grandpa…?" He turned his name being called, and tilted his head, "Thanks for the pep talk." Happy to see that his talk helped, he smiled before walking out, "Any time, my boy, any time." Bobby waited for the front door to close, and he lifted his head, his eyes determined.

"Grandpa's right…I am scared to tell her the truth…but I can't lie to her, either." He stood up, and tugged on his shoes before walking out the house with a sigh. "I gotta talk to Gerald about this…"

* * *

_**So the original idea of this chapter was to have Helga ACTUALLY believe that he was just helping Arnold, lol, but I decided that it'd be better this way…and I wouldn't die from you guys killing me. Yeah, anyway, review please! I love you much!**_

_**--KitaxHaku**_


	8. Best friend talk time!

I'm back! Sorry it took a while for me to update! I was in Japan for two weeks, and then I've just been over all busy with my Girl Scout Gold Award and what not…

Okay, story time!

And please review! ^_^ Shall we go for 60+?

~………………………….~

"Ah man Arnold…you've really done it this time."

Arnold (or as we've known him, Bobby) laid on Gerald's bed, covering his eyes with his arm. He turned onto his stomach as he looked at his best friend, who was braiding his thick hair again. "I know…what should I do?" He asked. "I don't want to hurt her anymore…but I can't just lie to her."

Gerald put his comb down as he finished his braids, and turned to look at Arnold. How had all of this happened, he wondered.

Comparing the Arnold they knew back then to the one in front of him, he almost couldn't believe that they were the same person. The old Arnold was cool and collected, funny and helpful; the new one was cold and harsh, and had some bad anger problems, as well as a habit of lying, he noticed.

Gerald sighed again, looking at Arnold again. "You should do what's right, my man." Arnold sat up, eyeing Gerald testedly. See? Anger problems.

"And just what is that, oh wise Gerald?" After Gerald gave him a raised eyebrow, Arnold looked down before apologizing lightly. Gerald sighed again before picking up a basket ball and throwing it towards Arnold's chest. He caught it, and looked at him in confusion.

Gerald shrugged in response, "What you feel in your heart."

~………………………….~

"You guys knew all along, didn't you?"

Phoebe fumbled with her shirt as she looked down, but nodded none the less. "H-he begged us not to tell you…I wanted to tell you, really I did…but…"

"But?" Helga watched as her best friend searched for the right word to describe it. What excuse could she possibly come up with?

"He wore this expression…it was so sad…so lonely…so lost. How could I have said no to that face?" Phoebe seemed to be talking to herself now, her eyebrows burrowed in thought. "Just what brought that look onto his face? He never wore that expression before…not the old Arnold."

Helga raised an eyebrow to Phoebe's explanation, and only turned onto her back in response. "Sad, lost and lonely, huh?" She chuckled coldly, crossing her arms over her chest. "Sounds like me ever since he left."

Phoebe quickly stood up from her bed and fell to the ground beside her friend. "You've never been alone, Helga!" Helga blinked in surprise to her friend's outburst. "I know you were sad when he left, but we've been here for you; I've been here for you!" She lowered her head, and took her glasses off before she rubbed her tearing eyes. "Please don't say you've been lonely!"

Helga sighed lightly before sitting up and patting her knee. "I understand, I understand. I'm sorry, Phoebe. I didn't mean to upset you." She smiled to the small Asian. "You're right. You were here for me the whole time. I have no right to say words such as lonely."

Satisfied, Phoebe smiled before excusing herself to the bathroom (Helga figured to wipe the tears). Once she heard the door click, Helga made her way to the window. "It's a bad storm out there…" Helga said, staring at the rain drops as she rested her head on her raised arm.

She sat in silence for a moment before her thoughts crawled out of her mouth. "…Where are you right now, Arnold?" She whispered. "I want to find you…and ask you so many things…"

Silence went by as she stared, and slowly she felt tears falling from her eyes. "But I'm afraid…afraid that you'll only run away again…and that you'll only lie more." She sighed, looking up to the clouds through the slightly foggy glass. "I'm afraid you'll only hurt me more…"

Only more questions filled her head as she said this; he had left her mind so unsatisfied. Why didn't he announce his return? Why had he left in the first place? Who was the boy at the carnival? And what on earth happened to his adorable football head?

Helga held her head in her hands before wiping her eyes as Phoebe returned. "Helga?" The small girl asked lightly, approaching the girl at the window seal. "Are you alright?"

Helga nodded in response before smiling up at Phoebe. "Yeah, I'm just frustrated is all."

Phoebe and Helga sat there for a moment before Phoebe spoke again. "I understand that you are upset about this, Helga," She paused, wondering if she could say the brave words, "but if you really are, then perhaps you shouldn't just sit here and do nothing about it."

Helga stared at Phoebe, who was now crumbling in fear. Perhaps she had said to much? "I-I'm sorry, Helga! I thought—"

"Why are you apologizing?" Helga asked, standing up. "You're right. I'm wasting time. I should go find him right now!" Helga jumped on her with a tight hug.

Phoebe smiled a little smile, still shocked that her bravery had paid off, and walked Helga to the door. "Be careful, Helga."

With a nod in response, "Thank you for your help tonight, Phoebe! I'll call you when I've straightened things out with that football head!"

Phoebe watched the blonde run out to her car under the pouring ran, and speed down the street. She smiled with a sigh; would that child really be alright?

"Yes…she will. She is Helga Pataki, after all."

~………………………….~

"Oh come _on_!" Helga kicked her car before tightening the hoodie over her head.

Such _great_ luck…to have her car stop in the middle of nowhere and with her cell phone out of juice. Oh, and not to mention the horrible rain storm.

"Of all times…when I was getting pumped up, too! Stupid cheap Bob…always having to be so…cheap! Argh!" She threw her hands up in the air before she shut herself inside her car.

What could she do? Her dad thought that she was spending the night at Phoebe's, and Phoebe thought that she had left to go find Arnold! No one else would know where she was!

The street was empty, too. A bunch of deserted buildings lined the street; it just screamed ghost town. "This is why we don't take shortcuts, okay, Helga?" She mumbled to herself, punching her head lightly before leaning her head back.

Just as she did this, though, a light caught the corner of her eye. She sat up quickly to see a car speeding by.

Perfect. That was probably the only car that would pass by tonight.

There was a screech, and Helga turned her head in confusion. The car that had been in such a rush had stopped.

"Oh thank you, whoever is watching over me!" She said, fumbling with the door before pulling her hood over her blonde locks and stepping out. She saw a figure get out of the car, but she couldn't see if it was an acquaintance or not. "H-hello?" She called. "Thank you for stopping; my car broke down, and my cell phone battery is dead, and it's really bad weather—" Helga stopped as she look at the person. She squinted her eyes, and took a step closer before gasping. The person, a man, stepped into the light of his car, and walked forward, since Helga was stuck in her tracks.

Helga tried to smile. She really did! But all that she could feel was a nervous square form on her lips.

"A-Arnold…"

Oh, this day had been absolutely _wonderful_.

~………………………….~

**I'm just writing this to inform you that I will be posting an FAQ soon. I will accept all questions and will answer them (unless the answer is a spoiler). PM me your questions, and I'll post it up on the FAQ! It'll be officially posted on August the tenth, so you should have plenty of time to get all your questions in!**


	9. Coward!

So I was totally going to do an FAQ, but besides the fact that there weren't any questions, I found there wasn't enough to be answered anyway. If more questions continue to build, I will put up an FAQ.

And I would just like to say THANK YOU! To you guys! You actually review! Some of my other stories' readers are like 'meh, don't feel like it' but you guys make me so proud! *tear

Okay, on with the story!

* * *

Helga took the cup of tea graciously though her eyes did not meet his. "T-thank you."

Arnold nodded without any attempt to make eye contact, and the two sat in silence for a moment, both sipping the hot liquid in a worn down diner.

Helga stared at Arnold. He looked out the window and into the rain, his face unreadable.

She took another sip before sighing inwardly.

This wasn't how she had planned to talk to him. She had planned to rush over to his house, and pull him to the roof (assuming the rain would've stopped) and confess that she knew everything, and that she still loved him.

Now he had picked her up from the side of an abandoned road, given her a change of clothes and bought her a cup of tea at the closest place, which happened to be a rundown dump.

No, to say in the least, this wasn't her plan.

"Helga?"

She blinked, and looked up quickly. "I'm sorry, what?"

They made eye contact, and held it for a moment before Arnold broke it. He tried to look at her again, but each time it failed, and he looked outside again.

"I said…do you feel alright?"

Helga nodded. "Oh…yeah, I'm fine now. I was just a little cold…thanks for lending me your extra clothes."

"No problem."

Silence again.

What could he do? Arnold was on his way to her house, ready to confess his lies to her. He was ready to embrace her, and tell her that he loved her, whether she hated him or not.

Then he saw her car on the way. Then he saved her from the freezing cold.

And then they were at a trucker's pit stop.

Both of them sighed, and then both of them looked up.

"What?"

The two paused, disturbed by their synchronized nervousness.

"It's nothing."

After an awkward silence, they rushed to the bathrooms.

Helga threw her hands onto the counter with a huff, startling many of the nightly prostitutes touching up on their makeup.

Now, up until this part of the story, you've seen both sides of Helga; the sweet, restrained side that she developed while Arnold was gone, and the rough but honest side that she has been known for.

Right now, Helga was expressing a different side.

While on the outside, she seemed like the rough girl we all knew, in the inside she was frantically searching for an answer.

She wanted to take Arnold in her arms, and hold him tight. She wanted to stroke his hair as she stared into his deep blue eyes. She wanted to lustfully kiss him full of passion, and make him want to kiss her back.

These feelings for him were the same as from when she was but a child; the only difference was that she was a teenager now, who had not stolen a kiss from anyone since saving the neighborhood alongside her love.

She had sworn to wait for him, and that is what she had done; but now he was here, and she was at a lost.

Her love was full of life and lust.

Where had her stubborn and forward spark gone? Why was she being such a shy fool? She hadn't seen him for years, yet all she could do was run around and play these stupid games with him?

She was sick of it. She wasn't going to play around anymore!

As soon as she decided this, she felt suddenly relieved. Her eyes gained the pure determination that she had held for so many of her younger years.

She, finally, felt like Helga Pataki again.

She sighed in relief, pulling her hair into a high ponytail. The prostitutes whispered rudely about her, angry at her intrusion to their sex gossip, and hoped that she would leave quickly. Helga turned to them.

"Hey you whores! Shut up!"

The five girls stared at the blond in shock as she stood up confidently. Helga grinned at them, popping her knuckles.

"You gotta problem with me? Last time I checked, this was public bathroom. Maybe you can go paint your faces somewhere else?"

One of the girls, the leader apparently, stepped up and growled back. "Honey, just what makes you think that you can come waltzin in here with that there attitude?"

"What makes you think I can't?" The two glared at each other before the prostitute grinned.

"Heck! This girl here has got some guts, apposing five girls in a bathroom!" All of the girls lightened up as their leader pulled Helga towards them.

Helga was blinking in confusion when they pulled out brushes. "Sorry about that whole mess just now, sweetie. We gotta keep track of our territory, you know? Here, to pay you back we'll give you a free make over!"

Helga blinked again, and then tried to refuse. When she saw she had no chance, she begged them. "D-don't go crazy with all that makeup, okay!"

~……………~

Arnold slammed the door of the closest stall, and slammed his fist onto the wall.

Why…why was love so freakin difficult?!

He should've just grasped her in his arms the moment she stepped into the headlights of his car. He should have taken her hand, and never let it go. He should have at least looked at her straight in the eye moments ago!

But instead, he cowered like the wimp he is, and didn't even think about telling her the truth.

Arnold sat there for a good five minutes, trying to gain the courage to talk to her, but nothing came.

He needed it. He needed the courage that was avoiding his heart!

He had had so many chances. Heck, they even shared a room for more than one night (which he still blamed his grandparents for not fixing up the other rooms)!

He had saved her countless times from Harold and been there for her when she cried her eyes out. He had even made the giant scheme with Arnie.

He had done all of this for her, yet he couldn't just tell her that he loved her?

No, because it was _never_ that simple. He was still leaving at the end of the year. He was leaving her after a year full of twists and turns.

But that was why he _had_ to tell her. He had to leave her without this hold on his conscience.

A sudden bang on the stall caused him to jump back to reality.

"Hurry up and get outta thar ya darned punk!" The voice was smothered and slurred; it was obvious the person was drunk.

Arnold huffed as he turned towards the door. At first, he wanted to open the door and punch the guy in the face, but then he remembered that he was with Helga. He couldn't possibly fight and then suddenly confess to her!

He opened the door without a word, and walked past the drunken man. "About time, damn punk ass bitch."

Arnold simply walked out of the restroom without another word.

~……………~

"There he is." Helga whispered as they noticed the blond boy walking out of the bathroom with his head hanging low. "That's the guy that I'm going to confess to."

The women giggled and squealed as Helga rolled her eyes. "Girl that is one fine lookin young man! You caught yourself a big one! Why, you can just look down yonder and see he's got a—"

Helga coughed loudly and glared at the woman, who chuckled apologetically.

"A-anyway, go get em tiger!" And with that, Helga was pushed towards him.

Arnold blinked, seeing something at the corner of his eye, and turned to see Helga tripping over her feet. She quickly caught her balance as she approached him.

"You…okay?" He asked slowly as she pulled the hood over her eyes. "Helga?"

"Yeah, I'm fine!"

His eyes fluttered in surprise at her almost yell. She bit her lip as her face was turning red.

"…What's under that hood?" He questioned, his eyebrow raised.

"Nothing, let's just go!" Helga held it down tightly as Arnold approached with curiosity.

"I'm driving, and I don't think I want a beat up girl in my car. Show me your bruises."

"I'm not beat up!" Helga snapped, letting go of the hood so she could glare at him. He took the chance to grab the hood and pulled it back.

"H-hey! I didn't say you could do that!" Helga snapped.

He paid no attention to her complaint. All he could see was a beautified girl.

"Makeup…?"

Helga fidgeted nervously under his gaze. "…it doesn't suit me, I know. Some of those girls poured it on me."

Arnold's hand dragged from the hood and to her face. He touched her soft skin, and stared at her rosy cheeks. Her eyes glittered more with the makeup surrounding her eyes.

"No…it looks good on you."

Truckers and prostitutes whistled at the couple. The two blushed, realizing they were making a scene, and sprinted out of the diner.

"Good luck girlie!" The leader prostitute called. "Get 'em while he's hot!"

Helga blushed deeply at this, but didn't turn around.

~……………~

The two sat in silence in the car as Arnold drove towards Helga's house. Countless times, they stole glances at each other, and countless times, they blushed ten shades of red.

Both of them had sworn to confess to the other, but neither moved towards that goal.

Helga gazed out the window, trying to slow down her speeding heart. She tried to focus her mind on the trees around the road, but she couldn't.

It was so hard to tell him. She had courage, but she just couldn't tell him in his car of all places!

"Is anyone at your house?"

Helga jumped in surprise, and turned to look at him. "What? Oh…yeah, my dad should be home."

Arnold looked at her for a moment before returning his eyes to the road. "Okay, that's good."

Helga stared at Arnold more. Tonight, he seemed like his old self: calm and collected, yet always worried about his friends.

She felt her cheeks turn red as she continued to gaze at him, and a smile crept onto her face.

It didn't matter if they were in a car. It didn't matter if he had picked her up on the side of the street. It didn't matter, none of it did. She wanted to tell him, and to tell him now.

"I know everything, Arnold."

Arnold slammed on the brakes as he swerved to the side of the road. Helga, who was holding her seat in alarm, stared at Arnold as he sat there with wide eyes. He was gripping the wheel hard until his knuckles turned white.

He covered his face and took a deep breath before opening the door quickly and walking into the rain. Helga stared at him as he paced back and forward by the forest. He stopped a couple of times to punch a tree before Helga finally got out of the car as well.

"Arnold?"

"Don't call me that!"

Arnold held his head with his hands and let out an aggravated yell. How could he have been such a coward, and let _her_ be the one to confess?

"Arnold, cal-"

"I was supposed to protect you!" He shouted, throwing his hands to the side. "I was supposed to have never let you know that I was here. I was supposed to have hidden everything from you!"

"A—"

"But I didn't! And now I've hurt you the most! It…it wasn't supposed to be this way…"

Helga stared at him with wide eyes as he broke down in the pouring rain. He had been just like his old self seconds ago, and now he was so lost.

She walked over slowly, watching the boy carefully.

"I should have never met you again!"

"Arnold, don't say that."

"You know you would've been happier without me here! You would have had Harold, and nothing would have gone wrong!"

She was close to him now, and she gazed up at him apathetically before punching him in the face. He fell to the ground as he held his cheek in surprise. She stood over him with her arms crossed.

"Stop being such a drama queen, Arnold!" Helga said with a growl. "Now, that was the punch of Helga Pataki. Gain something from it, Arnold Shortman!"

Arnold stared at her with wide eyes but stayed quiet as her eyes softened, and she lowered herself to his height.

"Don't you realize, Arnold? What is done is done…there's no turning back now."

"…Helga…" Arnold gazed at her, and his eyes filled with water.

Notice I said water, not tears. Because tears are for girls.

Anyway, he was overwhelmed, and he pulled her into a hug.

"A-Arnold?"

"…Let me stay like this…just for a little."

Helga nervously sat there, rather uncomfortable, but she enjoyed the warmth of their bodies connecting, and she slowly lifted her hands onto his back. He tightened his grip around her waist and rested his forehead on her shoulder. She could hear his quiet sobs as his shoulders tensed.

As strange as it seemed (and this night had been weird enough), she had never felt so at peace.

Just what had Arnold been through all these years they were separated? She didn't know, but she tried her best to console him.

"I…I'm here for you."

Helga thought that his grip couldn't get tighter, but he proved otherwise. He dug his forehead into her shoulder as his sobs shortened, and his shoulders relaxed. His legs bent around her body like a castle wall.

"Helga." He looked up at her, his eyes slightly puffy but clear and relaxed. "I am Arnold."

Helga nodded at him, and a grin fell on her lips before she hugged him tightly. "I know!"

He lifted her hands from around his neck and looked at her with a frown. "I am also a liar, a betrayer and a coward. I am also no longer the Arnold you knew back then."

Helga stared at him with a raised eyebrow. "I'll determine that, Arnold." She stood up, and pulled him with her as she walked towards the car. "But first, let's get out of the rain. I'm sure my make up looks horrible right now."

"Helga…you don't understand—"

"I do understand, alright, Arnold?!" She snapped, opening his door and pushing him in. She stomped over to her side and slid in, her face in his as she slammed her door shut behind her.

"I understand that you didn't want to tell me anything, and that you somehow set me up with a look-alike at the carnival! I understand that you aren't as happy as you were back then, but hey, people change!" She took a breath before calming down. "I understand all of that Arnold…what I don't understand is why you feel this way!"

Helga bit her lip as she finished, but added a little more before sitting up straight in her seat. "Please, just tell me everything that has happened to you…I want to be here for you, Arnold."

Arnold stared at her with wide eyes, but slowly smiled with a sigh. "You haven't changed at all, have you?"

He chuckled again before leaning back his chair and lying there. "…It'll probably take all night."

He heard a noise, and turned to see Helga resting her head towards him with her seat leaned back as well.

"We can use the rest of eternity if you need it."

Arnold smiled weakly at her before he turned his head and stared up. They gazed through his sunroof and to the stars as he began his tale.

"It started when I found the journal of my parents…"

* * *

…soooo, how'd you like it? I hope it wasn't too jumpy, I tried to smooth it out. Thanks for the reviews again! See you next chapter! Oh! And btw, I'll try putting up a snippet of the next chapter up for ya on my profile! Check it out; should have it up in 5 days or so. And I also began school so forgive me if the chapters come out later.


	10. The talk

Doesn't it make you mad that they were going to make another Hey Arnold movie about Arnold going to find his parents (with Helga I think), but they never made it? AND they were going to make another series called The Patakis but once again they never made it cause of the author and Nick's stupid arguments? Man, I want that movie and that series!!!

~………………~

"I found my parent's journal in the fourth grade. I had decided to go after them, and see if they were still alive. Of course, a kid traveling alone would be too suspicious. So Grandpa went with me to Mexico after fourth grade ended, helped me get all the utensils I would need, and after a sorrowful goodbye, I made my way through Central and South America."

"What? How did you, a fifth grader at that time, manage to go all that way alone? That just sounds impossible."

"Grandpa had set up check points along the map my parents had left in the journal. I stopped every couple of miles, and got food or information from the people I met."

"Why did you take them with you? Your grandparents?"

"They're getting older and older; taking them would have only sped up that process. I didn't want to lose them if I found nothing in the jungle."

"So…did you…did you find anything?"

Arnold turned his head to Helga, who was holding her breath in anticipation. He chuckled for a moment before his smile turned into a remorseful one. "Yes…but sometimes, I wish I hadn't."

He paused, trying to collect himself, and turned his head up towards the sunroof before he continued. "I found my parents after a year…but they were going through a difficult time.

"I recognized them instantly; I simply called out to them, and they turned, already knowing their son had returned to them.

"They were happy to see me again, and for a good three years we lived together. I became part of the village they lived in, and together we helped the butterflies that my parents were so fascinated by." Arnold's eyes shined, remembering the wonderful three years, but his eyes dimmed as he continued.

"…but I noticed how something was troubling them. Eventually, they told me."

"…What?"

He sighed.

"There was a neighboring village that wanted to use the butterflies as subjects for an experiment. They offered money in return for the butterflies we'd healed, but we refused. It was then that they began to harass us.

"There were more than just verbal threats; a month after our decline, we found dead animals on our door step. There were so many other horrible things that they did, but we endured it all.

"But one day…it went too far. They threw in a burning corpse that was dipped in oil, and our hut set on fire completely. We made it out alright, but my dad forgot something precious to him, and he ran back inside."

Arnold was silent, and Helga was now sitting up, shaking her head. "No…"

"The roof collapsed before we could go in after him. If he didn't die from the collapsed roof, he was burnt to death."

Helga covered her face as Arnold sat up and turned to look out the window. "My mother was in a shocked state. She was constantly worrying about my wellbeing; she woke up in the middle of the night to check on me. Her eyes were always swollen red; she never stopped crying. It was a month after my father died when she asked that I return to the United States again."

"Huh? But why…why did she want to send you back?"

"She wanted to protect me. She promised that she would let me know when I could come back. She wanted to make sure that no one else would die."

"But Arnold…why didn't you tell us you were Arnold? Why did you cover yourself?"

Arnold's face, if possible, dimmed even more as he faced Helga. "Shortly after I left, my mother called me and warned me that the neighboring village was trying to track me down. She begged that I disguise myself; she was too paranoid.

"She had me get plastic surgery on my head; anyone could notice me with a football head." He chuckled quietly at his joke, but Helga stared at him.

"So…you didn't tell us because they're people after you?"

He nodded, and Helga sighed. "Oh Arnold…if only you had told us…we could have helped you instead of giving you more problems."

Arnold smiled lightly as he shook his head, and looked at Helga as he rested his cheek in his hand. "It's alright. Being with you guys again has been one of the brighter moments of my teenage years. I actually felt human again."

Helga smiled lightly before it dropped, and she took his hand in hers. "Arnold…I-I know this sounds weird, coming from me, but I just want you to know…t-that I am here for you."

Arnold didn't hesitate. "I know. And that is why you were the last to know of my secret."

When Helga responded with a look of pure confusion, he explained. "Even when we were younger, you were always around me, somehow giving me advice through hidden messages or slapping me out of my sorrowful dazes. It didn't take me long to realize that you weren't the mean girl you acted like. Strong-willed, maybe, but not mean."

Helga's ears burned as he said this, and she bent her head down. "…you figured it out? That I…felt that way about you?"

"That you loved me?" She nodded. "Yeah, I realized it shortly after I left."

Helga was hiding her face in her hands in embarrassment as Arnold smiled. "And it didn't take me long to realize that I felt the same way too."

Her hands fell off her face as she stared at Arnold, who was gazing at her as he had Lila years ago.

She didn't understand the words he was saying. It didn't make sense, and it didn't add up. Helga was…Helga. Arnold was Arnold. Helga + Arnold = ???

"…Why?"

"Why what?"

"I…always pushed you away back then; I never wanted you to know of my feelings. But here you are, returning my feelings..."

Tears streamed down Helga's cheeks as she covered her face again. Whether it was in sorrow for Arnold, or joy for his feelings she didn't know. But all she could do was cry.

Arnold petted her head lightly as she rested her head on his chest.

"…Let's stay here for the night, okay?"

Helga nodded her head, and the two spent the rest of the night, staying close to each other while they could.


	11. Alone

Been a while, huh? Thanks for sticking with me! Sorry it's short, but it has to be.

~…………………~

"No…not yet…I don't want to wake up just yet…" Regardless of her mumbled prayers, her eyes opened and she awoke, her head still on Arnold's chest.

She wasn't going back to sleep, even though she wished for nothing more than to stay where she was. So she turned to the next best thing.

Arnold's sleeping face was embraced with specks of light shining through the tree branches; his nose twitch as he growled lightly, trying to scare the sun away. Helga giggled lightly in amusement; is this how he was every morning? Was he like this when they were just little children?

"Arnold…" Even whispering his name sent joyous vibes down her spine. "My dear, dear Arnold…"

Pecking his cheek as a reflex, Arnold moaned lightly before opening his eyes. Helga's face turned red as she sat up in her seat. "G-good morning…"

"Helga?" Arnold said groggily. "Good morning…what time is it? Is breakfast ready?"

Helga laughed into her hand as Arnold realized what he had said. He turned red as he wiped his face. "S-shut up…"

The two looked at each other, smiling. It was early, eight o'clock to be precise, so the two decided to go to the park to spend a little more time together. They knew it would be a while before they could weasel their relationship into the others' lives. Especially Harold and Lila.

"Speaking of which…" Helga said, suddenly remembering, "Who was that boy at the carnival?"

Arnold looked away nervously as they strolled down the path through the woods. "O-oh…him…"

Helga raised her eyebrow in curiosity when Arnold didn't answer right away. "Arnold?"

"He was nobody, don't worry about it."

Helga stopped, pulling Arnold's shoulder to spin him around. "Don't worry about it? That boy saved my life, and called himself Arnold! How was he nobody?"

Arnold scratched his head nervously, and looked at Helga. "I didn't want you to know, back then, who I was…so I had Arnie go as me to ease your heart a little…he just happened to see Harold tormenting you and jumped in."

Helga's eyes widened before she growled. "You mean to tell me that instead of YOU saving me, you let your creepy cousin do the dirty work?!"

Arnold flinched at her yelling, but then leaned towards her in defense. "H-hey! I didn't know anything was even happening to you!"

"Oh, so you didn't even think to worry about me when I left with Lila, the girl I hate?" Helga sighed in aggravation and turned away. "Thanks Arnold, that means _so_ much to me!"

"Listen, Helga—"

"No Arnold, you listen!" Helga screamed, turning back to him. "All I have done for you is be patient and understanding, the least you could do is be honest with me!"

The two stood in silence for a moment before Helga started walking away. "H-Helga, wait—"

"I-I just need some time alone…Arnold." She continued to walk away before stopping to look at him one more time. "…and I think you do, too."

Arnold watched her walk away in silence. "Being alone is the last thing I want…isn't it the same for you, Helga?"


	12. The End?

Helga walked quickly back to where Arnold and she had last talked.

What was she thinking, leaving Arnold after all that had just happened?

"Idiot!" Getting angry just because he had tried to protect her. Did she really deserve him?

"A-Arnold—"

Helga stopped behind a tree, and stopped herself as she saw Arnold on the phone, resting beside a little creek.

"Yeah, I'm doing okay. Yeah…she knows. No…she doesn't know about that. I'm not sure when I'll tell her." Arnold turned sideways to look at a tall tree, and sighed. "Yes…nothing has changed.

"I will return at the end of the school year." He said goodbye, and as he hung up, turned to see Helga gapping at him. "H-Helga!"

"You're going…to leave again?" She asked. It was time to be mature; she didn't have time to run and cuddle in a corner.

After a moment of silence, Arnold nodded. "My mother said that the men tormenting us have finally given up. She wants me back home; I can't just abandon her."

Helga stared at him, emotionless. "You can't abandon me, either." She moved swiftly to him, and kissed him forcefully. He resisted as she pressed harder and harder.

"Helga, stop it!" He said, tearing her off. She staggered back, and wiped her lips.

"Well what the hell do you want, Arnold?" She screamed, "because that's all we've been doing; following what _you_ want!"

He stood there nervously, unsure on what to say. He closed his eyes, and sighed. "I…want to stay here…but I want to go back, too.

"She's my mom, Helga. You remember how I was without her back in elementary school. I had meltdowns…so when I finally found her, I vowed I wouldn't lose her again."

He turned away again, wiping his brow in frustration. Helga walked up to him, and patted his shoulder. "But I haven't had you _since_ elementary school…and I won't let you go again."

She took hold of his hand, and squeezed it tight. "No…I won't _ever_ let you go again."

Arnold spun around, anger taking hold of his face. "Why are you being so selfish? You know this hurts—"

Helga shoved him lightly, sighing, but still held his hand. "Arnold, I'm not taking you away from your mother."

She pecked his cheek before wrapping her arms around his waist and grinning up at him.

"I'm going with you!"

~…~

DON'T HATE ME, JUST READ!

**I'm sorry to say that I am ending the story in this chapter…**

This story has been just so…so…unorganized! And Helga is so out of character (when did you ever see Helga G. Pataki cry _that_ much?)

…and most of the stuff I put in here was purely for my own *drool* fantasies between Arnold and Helga!

**BUT DON'T WORRY.**

I'm going to rewrite it! Chapter by chapter! It will be under a new story name:

…_I haven't decided yet…_

_**If you have any good ideas for the name, please feel free to spit it out in a review!**_ :D

I have no idea how this second draft is going to come out…it may be completely different, or it may be the same, only more organized. I'm pretty sure that Arnold **will have to have his football** **shaped head**, and Harold and Lila won't be so…_insane_...

That'll change things drastically, but…it needs to be done!

I'm sorry that my updates sucked…whenever I write stories unorganized, I begin to hate them more and more, and want to revise them again and again, or else I neglect them…

I'm going to try my best, though, with the second draft of this story! I'll post one final chapter to let everyone know when the next draft is starting.

_See you next draft, then!_


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